To Deserve a Second Chance
by BlueRowley
Summary: In the To Have a Second Chance reality, Harry Snape's kitsune, Samuru, shares his adventure-filled life story with Harry in the form of bedtime stories. Harry discovers that Samuru's past reveals a lot about the fox's true nature.
1. Chapter 1

This story branches off of To Have a Second Chance. It takes place between chapters 20 and 21. It can be read solo, but reading the previous story may help understand Harry's relationship with both Sam and Severus Snape. I hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: Do not own Harry Potter

* * *

"Harry Snape!" Severus Snape called. "For the last time, get in bed!"

Nine-year-old Harry Snape scrambled off the couch and out of the living room, losing a slipper on the way that he paused to slip back on, and to his room. It was October, so Harry wore long pajamas and kept his slippers on when he walked around. Harry Snape, once Harry Potter in another reality, had entered this reality as a four-year-old, with Severus Snape as his father and Lily Snape (nee Evans) as his deceased mother. According to Dumbledore, who had created the Second Chances Reality, Harry had kept all his previous life's miemory because his magic was incredibly strong. And as long as he never revealed to his father that they lived in a new reality, he could stay in the new world forever.

"Dad! Storytime!" Harry yelled. He crawled into bed and waited for his father to come. Sam, a three tailed kitsune who Harry had met hardly a week ago trotted into the room. The presently wolf-sized red fox leaped onto Harry's bed, sitting down at the end and shrinking down into the size of a normal red fox. He flicked his black tipped ears at Harry.

 _: Why must you yell so often?_ The red fox said through telepathy, his ears laid flat against his head.

"Because Dad won't hear me and come in to tell me a bedtime story." Harry replied.

 _: Of course._ The fox sighed. _Well, I should be off to hunt._

"Wait!" Harry stopped Sam from misting, or taking the form of a white, misty apparition, and taking off to the Forbidden Forest outside of Hogwarts. "Why don't you tell me a story?"

 _: About what?_ Sam tilted his head to the side, his three tails flicking behind him.

"I don't know. Maybe about how you came to this reality? And what happened to you here? The more you talk the more it sounds like a lot has happened to you. What did happen to you?" Harry sat up on his bed, his green eyes sparkling.

Sam was the only other person (or animal) Harry had met that knew about both realities. Harry had yet to figure out why the fox knew, or even how.

 _: My life isn't really kid-friendly . . ._ Sam started to say, looking off to the side and allowing one ear to fall to the side, the black tip revealing itself.

"Please?" Harry whined, letting his lower lip pucker out and widening his eyes. It was a look most people fell for, even his father.

The fox huffed, both ears dropping briefly before perking back up.

 _: Fine. But only because you asked . . . nicely._ Sam said.

Harry smirked. _Right. That's what they all say._ Harry thought.

 _: Remember, I can hear your thoughts._ Sam gave a foxy smile at Harry's frown, his mouth wide open and his lips curved. _Anyway, where to start . . .?_

"How about the streets? You said your parents left you there. Why?" Harry asked.

 _: They did, indeed. It is actually where my life in this reality began. When my parents were leaving me . . ._

* * *

Sam was suddenly lifted off the ground from where he had fallen and restrained by two men while a third attempted to slide a noose around his neck. Sam used the weight of the two people restraining him to lift himself up and kick the man in front of him away. The two men forced Sam back on to his feet and one of the men kneed Sam in his stomach. Pain fired through Sam's entire body, and he suddenly felt weak and his legs gave out from under him. He felt the noose around his neck and suddenly, he was being lifted. Sam struggled against the pressure of the rope at his neck, his body thrashing and his hands clawing frantically at the constricting pain as he was lifted higher until his feet could no longer feel the ground beneath him.

"Go back and rule the hell you came from, Devil. Let me help you on your way." Sam heard the large man say below him. Sam, whose eyes had been squinted shut from the pain, managed to look down and catch a glimpse of what the man below him was doing. He saw the man pick up his tanto that he had dropped and pull back an arm, ready to either throw or impale. Sam closed his eyes again, listening to the whistle of the knife flying through the air, more than likely aimed for his head.

And then everything went silent. Pain disappeared. And Sam could no longer feel the crushing pressure at his neck.

Sam opened his eyes and blinked again at the darkness he saw. His eyes adjusted a bit and Sam saw a strange cardboard brown all around him. He touched his head gingerly, a pounding headache threatening to split his head in two. He ran his hand through his fox red hair, pulling at the ends roughly. He remembered the last events that had happened to him and though about the tanto. That should have killed me; it was aimed for my head. I should be dead right now. He could hear yelling outside. What were they saying? Sam focused his hearing and listened.

"We can't just leave him here! They'll find him! They will!" A female's voice said.

"He'll be fine if he stays in the box. It looks like any other normal box humans make by putting slabs of cardboard together. He'll be safe." Came a deep male voice.

The voices were so familiar, like a very distant memory. Sam felt around and pushed at the loose parts of the box. He looked out into the opening and saw two people with the strong scent of kitsune on them. They both had fox red hair, the male's like his own hair, and the female had hers down and much longer. They man and woman both turned to look at him. Sam gasped.

 _My parents! What is happening?_ Sam looked down at himself and realized he was tiny once more. _I'm six again! No! No! I'm reliving my life!_

"Samuru, get back inside!" The woman stepped forward and gently pushed Sam back into the box. "Stay hidden. Don't make a sound! Don't move!"

Sam pushed himself back out, against his mother's commands.

"Stop! What's going on?" Sam yelled. He wasn't really asking them but the world itself.

A stronger hand fell on his shoulder. Sam looked up at his father who had taken his mother's place.

"We've told you what is happening, Samuru. You'll be okay. You are a gifted kitsune. You will figure out to survive on your own. I know you will. You are very special. You can do this." Sam's father lifted his hand and grasped Sam's smaller hand. "You can."

Sam felt himself nod, just as he did all those years ago the first time his parents left him.

"That's my boy." The man kissed Samuru's hand and stood to his feet. Samuru's mother stepped forward and kissed Sam's forehead for several seconds, tears streaming down her cheeks before she pulled away and gently pushed Sam back into the box.

"Stay hidden." She whispered. Running footsteps could be heard from down the pathway. Sam watched as his parents ran out of the small alleyway, running as fast as they could. Sam peeked out of the flaps. After several long seconds, he finally saw the running legs of what he knew to be hunters of the supernatural, more specifically kitsune. They ran in the direction his parents had gone.

Sam sank back into the box after he watched them pass by. He was reliving his life. Perhaps he had been killed and he was really in hell. Or perhaps it was all an illusion. Kitsune were masters of creating worlds of illusions that seemed so realistic until it decided to kill in the end. Sam would have to find the creator of this illusion and kill the kitsune responsible before it killed him.

* * *

"But it wasn't an illusion, was it?" Harry asked, still sitting in his bed but now holding his stuffed tiger, Whisker, a Christmas present from his father when he was four.

 _: I was so convinced that I was living in an illusion for an entire year before I finally gave up on the idea. Usually, when a kitsune creates an illusion, they create a reality so addicting that whoever the victim is will believe the illusion to be reality and fall into a sense of safety and security. That is when the kitsune kills its victim. However, I had allowed myself to fall into that state several times within the following year; it just became highly unlikely that it was a kitsune's illusion._ Sam said.

"What happened next?" Harry asked impatiently.

"Telling stories without me?" Severus asked as he walked into the room. The potions professor of Hogwarts stopped by Harry's bed. "Get under the covers, young man."

Harry crawled under the covers and smiled at Severus.

"What's the story?" Severus asked, raising an eyebrow at Sam.

"Sam was just telling me about his past. He just finished with his parents abandoning him in an alleyway." Harry answered.

"Oh, really?" Severus laid next to Harry. "Mind if I join? I must admit I am curious about your history as well. I'm not too late into the story am I?"

 _: Of course not._ Sam winked slyly at Harry. _We've only just begun. And mind you, this is an English version of events, considering I spoke Japanese most my life. I didn't learn English until I was almost two hundred years old. As I was saying, my parents left me in hopes that I would survive without them. They were chased by hunters and their fate was sealed that same night. However, . . ._

* * *

Sam remained in the box overnight. It had been a cold night and at some point in the morning it had rained. Sam felt tears in his eyes. He had been abandoned. Left to die on his own. Sam cried, his sobs being the only sounds of the early morning. Sam never left the box that next day, refusing to leave its security. Later that night, after Sam had fallen asleep, he was awoken by the sounds of something moving. Sam peeked out of the box.

He saw nothing out of the ordinary. But the sounds continued. Sam crawled out of the box and looked around, staying on his knees as he did so. He finally saw a shape moving quickly on the roofs of the old houses. The shape paused on the roof of the house next to Sam's box and Sam could make out a foxy structure and realized it was a kitsune, and that kitsune was staring right at him.

Sam back-crawled away as the kitsune jumped to the ground before him. The fox had five tails and a completely white chest and underbelly. He was the size of a large wolf. He flicked his ears in curiosity.

 _: Hello, little one_. What's your name? Sam heard the fox's deep, rich voice in his head.

Sam stared at the fox and refused to say a word. He didn't know the kitsune, so why should he answer its question.

 _: Don't be afraid, I won't harm you. Tell me what your name is._

Sam withdrew deeper into the box as the larger kitsune neared. _I can't fight him off on my own – not this size. It's a simple question, though. Why not answer it? Maybe he'll leave me be if I answer it._

"I'm Sa-Samuru." Sam's voice cracked as he said his name. The larger kitsune laughed, a cough like sound coming from the fox.

 _: Well, Sa-Samuru. My name is Akira. What are you doing out here all alone? Where are your parents?_

Sam looked down, studying the crumbling ends of the cardboard. Memories of living in the box for a week before beginning to learn the ways of the street returned to him. His parents were dead and he would relive his life of thievery on the streets. Tears once again filled his eyes.

"They're dead." Sam whispered. Sam angrily wiped the tears away. He unintentionally released a sad sob.

 _: I'm sorry, kit. It's alright to cry. You have every reason to._

Sam felt his eyes water more and he reached up to try and brush them away. His eyes began to feel hot and his head started to hurt from his resistance. He made another sob sound. The large fox looked over his shoulder, glancing into the streets.

 _: Actually, I believe now is not a good time for tears. We need to get you out of here. Come now, shift._

Sam stared at the fox. Did the kitsune want to take him? To where? Sam shuffled back into the box.

 _: Now, now, none of that. Come, I'm not leaving you here. You can't be left on the streets. You don't deserve that. Come._

Akira nosed his way into the box and ripped at the tattered shirt Sam was wearing. Then he began to pull at the shirt, lifting it up. Sam recognized the action as something his mother would do when she was growing impatient and tried to undress him so he would shift. Sam shoved himself away from the fox, backing up deeper into the box.

"Stop! Leave me alone. Go away!"

 _: No Sa. I can hear hunters close by, we need to leave before they find you._ Akira tried to reason.

Sam remembered that in his previous life, hunters would continue to pass his box, but due to its condition and sagging structure, no one bothered to look inside. No one would find him. Sam reached out and closed the flaps of the box.

"I'm safe right here." Sam called out.

It was quiet for a moment. Then Sam smelled smoke. Sam frowned. Then he saw flames swallowing the right side wall of the box. Sam screamed and threw himself out of the box and crawled away from it. He watched as the older fox burned the rest of the box with all five blazing tails covering it. As the last of the box disappeared in the fiery fire that also faded, Akira turned to Sam.

 _: Shift, now._ Akira hissed, fire collecting in the back of his mouth.

Sam stared at the fox, terrified. This wasn't supposed to happen. Maybe he could make a run for it. Old instinct was kicking in as Sam slowly crawled away further before rushing to stand and start running. He took three short jogs when teeth closed on the back of his shirt and yanked him back into the alley. He was pulled against the side of the old house before the fox released him, only to press himself against Sam to keep him still. Sam was about to kick the fox when he heard people approaching. Sam held his breath and he felt the fox's fur bristle, the flames on his tails still slowly dying down.

"Where did you see it?" A deep voice said a good distance away.

"There were two. Male and female. They hid in an alleyway and then went running out when a few hunters approached." Came another voice.

"Did you catch them?"

"Yes. They fought, though. Naturally. And viciously. I believe their might be a baby they hid somewhere in that alley. That is what we are looking for."

The footsteps were coming closer.

As soon as the fox let up the slightest bit, Sam pushed away, breathing heavy. Everything was wrong. This wasn't what was supposed to be happening.

 _: Easy, kit. You'll be fine. I'll protect you. I just need you to shift. Don't fight me, Samuru. I am not afraid to hurt you if it means saving your life._ The fox opened his mouth and fire danced in the back of his throat as he waited for Sam to make a decision.

Sam felt tears in his eyes again but he grabbed the ends of his shirt and pulled it over his head, throwing it to the ground. What choice did he have? He was too little to fight off hunters on his own. And this kitsune seemed pretty insistent that Sam obey him. The footsteps were closer and he quickly pulled his pants off. He had just morphed into his kitsune form, a very small fox kit, when the owners of the footsteps appeared.

"Kitsune!" One of the dark clothed men shouted.

The other man in similar attire whistled sharply.

Sam had only a glimpse of the men before he was lifted by his scruff. Akira jumped up and clung to the edge of a roof, hanging from the ancient house that made up a side of the alley way, his tails swinging for balance. He pulled himself up and glanced back on at the men. Seven more were joining the two, all carrying some kind of weapon. One of the men was carrying a bow and he fired an arrow at the fox at the same time a couple other men threw sharpened spears.

Akira leaped up the slanted roof. The arrow missed and spears missed. Akira set Sam down and released a jet of flames. The length was short, as was typical of foxfire, but the men scattered regardless.

The archer shot another arrow at the fox from behind a nearby tree. The kitsune opened his mouth and coughed up a large ball of fire that exploded and engulfed the tree into flames as it struck. The archer jumped out from behind the burning tree.

Akira picked up Sam by his scruff and climbed up the roof. His tails were ablaze once more and he dragged the fire on the wooden roof, leaping to the ground as the hot heat began swallowing the house and screams could be heard from within.

Sam was thrown as something heavy hit the larger fox and knocked him to the ground. Sam shook himself and looked around. He gasped as he saw a large man running towards him. Once again, old instinct told him to stand his ground and fight, but his small size told him to run and find cover. Sam struggled to run fast on his small, clumsy paws and he was roughly grabbed by his scruff and lifted high into the air. He whimpered at the man in dark clothes and dark brown eyes. The man held up a long knife like weapon to Sam's neck.

Suddenly, a ball of fire struck the man in the face, engulfing the head in flames. Reflexively, the man threw his arms up, sending Sam flying through the air. Teeth closed around his stomach and back in midflight. Akira ran away from the men and burning house, dragging his blazing tails on the ground. Akira performed a half circle as he ran, creating five huge lines of fire due to the dry grass catching easily. Finally, he lifted his tails and shook away the flames. He paused and looked back at the fire surrounded men. One of the men stood at the first line of fire, directly in front of it, presumably the leader of the group. The dirty blond hair and grey eyes told Akira that he wasn't a native, probably hired to kill off the kitsune. However, there was something odd about the man, something . . . animalistic. Demonic. Akira ignored the feeling and carried the little fox away from the small city and towards a large forest that surrounded a mountain.

As the trees grew denser, the fox could feel the kit in his mouth start to squirm and whimper. It wasn't a very comfortable way to be carried, but in the midst of all the chaos, the fox did not have the time to readjust his grip. After coming to a clearing and glancing around, Akira set the little kit down.

Sam gathered his paws under him and sat on the cold forest floor. He lowered his head and closed his eyes, his ears drooping.

"Samuru." The fox wanted his attention.

"What?" Sam growled at the fox, baring his teeth. "I mean, thank you, sir, for saving me. I guess you can go now." Sam surrendered, lowering his head again, ears falling. Sam couldn't help but think that whatever had happened to him, fate couldn't deal him anything worse. Sam knew how his life ended. Why couldn't it have stayed ended? The fur around Sam's eyes began to grow damp and he blinked angrily.

"Samuru, while I appreciate your gratitude, I cannot leave you in the middle of a forest, just like I couldn't leave you in the streets of a city. That wouldn't be appropriate of me."

"Then what do you want to do with me? Just leave me here, I'll be fine on my own."

"No, I'm afraid I cannot do that. You are just a kit. You need parents. I would like to take you in myself if that is alright with you."

Sam looked up at the larger fox. He wanted to take Sam in? Adopt Sam as his own? Sam had lived nearly three hundred years on his own without paternal care, and while he developed a horrible temper, resentment, a dangerous greed, and made several mistakes, he came out all right. Didn't he? What difference would be having a parent make in his life.

Akira said nothing nor did he move. Sam felt a bit uncomfortable with the unwavering stare. He was being given the chance of a family, and whether this was hell, an illusion or not, Sam wanted to take that chance. And perhaps this time around, he could avoid being murdered.

"I . . . guess I could try it out." Sam suggested.

"Try it out?" Akira asked, amused. "I guess I can work with that. But I'll warn you; once we start 'trying it out' I'm not letting you go." The fox picked Sam up by his scruff.

"What? Wait, that's not fair. Then why bother trying it out?" Sam protested, squirming slightly.

"I don't know. But I'm rather fond of you. You're feisty and cute."

"I'm not cute."

"To me, you are. I'll introduce you to my mate and daughter. You are officially a big brother."

"What if they don't like me?" Sam asked, trying to look up at the fox but could only glimpse the tip of Akira's nose.

"Hush, they'll like you. Now, try and go to sleep, Sa. We have a long journey."

Sam relaxed under the scruff hold. He liked the new nickname and figured it was probably inspired by their first encounter. Sam was a bit anxious to meet the vixens in question, but also excited. He yawned and fell asleep to Akira gently rocking him by moving his head side to side slowly and softly.

* * *

"I'm glad someone found you, Sam. I can't imagine what living on the streets would be like, especially for a child." Severus commented.

"You can only shift with no clothes on?" Harry asked.

 _: That's your concern after all that, huh?_ Sam said. Then the fox snorted. _Figures. I believe that is enough story for one night._

"No! What happens next? Does his mate like you? How old's his daughter? Do you still live with them?" Harry started asking.

"Harry, enough. Sam can tell you more tomorrow night if he wants. Right now, it's bedtime." Severus kissed Harry's forehead and ruffled his son's hair before standing.

 _: I will be delighted to tell you more. However, I must hunt before the night is over. Good night, Harry._

"Goodnight Sam. Goodnight Dad." Harry feel asleep as soon as Severus turned the lights out.

"Thank you for the story, Sam. For Harry, I mean." Severus told the fox.

 _: He asked. I only answered. If you'd like to hear my story, you are always welcome to join. It's good to reflect._

Severus smiled and nodded to the fox before saying good night and making his way to bed. Sam misted into his apparition form and flew through Hogwarts and out into the great Forbidden Forest.

* * *

I hope you enjoyed this first chapter. Do you think it'd make a good story?


	2. Son of Ninetails

Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!

* * *

Harry jumped into his bed and waited for Sam. He had so many questions that only the fox could answer. Severus walked into the room first, however, and dimmed the lights.

"Dad, are you going to listen to Sam's story, too?" Harry asked.

"I have papers to grade, Harry." Severus said. He sat on the edge of Harry's bed, wrapping an arm around his son.

"Please?" Harry whined. "He's about to meet his family."

"Hmm." Severus thought, tapping a finger on his chin. "I guess I could listen in on a few minutes of Sam's story. But then I have to get back to work. Deal?" Severus held out a hand.

"Deal." Harry shook his father's hand.

 _: Traditionally, a hand shake is accompanied by a bow where I am from._ Sam said as he trotted into the room, his black paws stretching out gracefully as he did so. He was currently the size of a normal fox.

"Okay." Severus said as he watched Sam jump up onto the bed and sit at the end. "Shall we?"

Severus turned to his son and bowed deeply. Harry laughed and bowed dramatically, waving a single arm around as he did. Severus chuckled and folded his hands together as if in prayer and bowed again. Harry bowed from side to side repeatedly. Severus smirked and bowed once more, leaning in close to Harry until their foreheads touched. Harry smiled and pushed against his father. Sam cocked his head to the side, his ears perked up and the white tips of his tails flicking in amusement.

 _: How . . . creative._ The fox smiled, all teeth showing and tongue falling out a bit. _Not quite . . . traditional, however._

"You have to finish your story." Harry insisted, moving over on his bed so his father could have more room. "Did Akira's wife like you? What's their daughter's name? Did you like them? Did Akira . . .?"

"Harry, let him tell the story." Severus admonished.

 _: It's alright. Questions inspire a curious mind. But mind you, foxes don't use the term 'wife.' We say 'mate.'_

"Oh." Harry said. "Did Akira's mate like you?"

 _: She did, indeed. As did their daughter. However, Akira also discovered something about me I'm sure I would never have found out until much later in my life . . ._

* * *

Sam felt as though he had been carried for hours. Akira had carried him beyond the mountains and threw several hidden pathways in the forests of Japan. Sam had fallen asleep twice during the journey. When he awoke the second time, he noticed that they were approaching a clearing in the forest. It looked like a cave-like den had been built from fallen branches and rocks. Sam squinted at the den as a shape started to form in the darkness.

Another fox cautiously stepped out of the den.

"Akira?" Came a female voice.

Akira said nothing, merely continued walking forward.

"Akira!" The other red fox came running forward. Sam could make out four tails. "Where have you been?"

Akira still said nothing even as the other fox ran to his side and walked alongside him.

"Tell me you weren't in the human village again." The fox said, lowering her head to Akira's. "You were, weren't you?" The fox jumped in front of Akira, effectively stopping him in his tracks. The vixen growled at him. "You're going to put yourself in an early grave. Is . . . is that a kit?"

Akira inclined his head.

"Mai, meet Samuru." Akira said.

The vixen, Mai, sniffed the small kit. Sam curled in on himself, uneasy with the new fox, but unable to do anything since Akira still had his scruff.

"Oh, Akira, where did you find him? Where are his parents?" Mai asked, raising her head to look up at Akira. Sam looked at the fox before him. She looked very similar to Akira, white chest that led to a white stomach, black paws and a strong build. However, even though both foxes were at their largest, the size of large wolves, Mai was definitely smaller than Akira by at least a head.

"Hunters. He was in a box in the village." Akira answered.

Mai looked down at Sam.

"The poor kit. So many kitsune are slaughtered lately. My parents and sisters. Your parents. And now this little one's parents. And so young. He never got to know them." Mai told Akira.

"If I had been any later, hunters would have found him. I actually had a run in with them. We got away safely." Akira assured.

Mai looked down sadly at Sam again.

"I thought you'd like another kit to raise. I'm warning you, though, he's a feisty one." Akira joked lightly.

"Now is not the time for jokes." Mai said as she opened her mouth and reached under Akira's jaws and behind Sam. Sam curled in on himself once more, unsure of what the fox was doing. He suddenly felt himself being shifted and pulled around as he was transferred from Akira to Mai. Sam was surprised at how much scruff he seemed to have. Mai now held Sam firmly but gently by his scruff, and Sam swore it was a different feel than how Akira held him. The hold felt softer and more gentle.

Mai turned away and began trotting back towards the den.

"What, no thank you?" Akira asked, running to catch up with her. He trotted at her side. "No kiss for the work? No nuzzle for the bravery?" Akira had a foxy smirk on his face.

"I'll bite you if you don't lay off. You still went to the human village and nearly got yourself killed. Regardless of the adorable kit you brought home, as far as I'm concerned, you can sleep outside." Mai entered the den.

"Not home five minutes and I'm already out of the doghouse." Sam heard Akira mutter.

In the den, Sam discovered that although it looked as if the branches and rocks formed a tipi, upon entering, Mai began crawling down a large, steep hole in the ground. Sam wasn't sure exactly how deep it was, but he took a wild guess that the tunnel went about five feet under the ground. Finally, the two foxes reached a large opening that had three other tunnels branching off of it. Mai could stand in the large opening. She set Sam down.

"Wait here, pup." Mai said, giving Sam a gentle lick.

Mai crawled down another tunnel. Sam watched her go before looking up at the large main tunnel when he heard scratching. Akira entered the large opening and slightly crouched as he walked to a corner of it, lying down and dropping his five tails around him, two of which were unable to curl about him and laid out straight behind him. He flicked his ears as he studied Sam.

"Welcome to the fox den, Sa."

Sam looked around. In his previous life he had not lived in a fox den. This would be a new experience for him. He could see scratches on the dirt walls, indicating that the entire den had been dug out only, a very time-consuming task for a couple foxes. He heard scratching of claws again and looked down the tunnel Mai disappeared in. Mai's smaller frame allowed her to semi stand so she could step through. Mai set something down as she laid down near Akira, facing the larger fox. Between the two foxes now sat a tiny fox kit, even smaller than Sam.

Sam looked at the smaller kit. She was very small and looked a lot like her parents, white chest and all. Sam sat where he was, away from the small family.

"Come, Samuru," Akira encouraged. "Come and meet your new sister."

Sam slowly stood to his feet and slinked over to the three foxes. Mai gently nudged the little kit his way, smiling softly. The tiny kit stumbled a little from the nudge but quickly gathered her footing. She looked up at Sam and snarled slightly, revealing sharp, tiny puppy teeth. Sam backed away quickly.

"Now, now." Akira lifted the little kit and rocked her gently, calming her. "Be nice. He's your new brother, Sumi."

Akira set the little kit back down, closer to Sam. The fur on the kit bristled and Sam felt his own fur doing the same. The little kit sniffed at Sam. Sam stood stock-still as she did so, allowing the smaller kit to sniff him. As the little pup's fur began to relax, Sam allowed his to do the same. Suddenly, sharp teeth sank into his shoulder and Sam yelped.

"No, no, Natsumi. We do not bite." Mai picked up the smaller kit and moved her away from Sam. Sam felt himself being lifted into the air and set between Akira's paws. He felt a rough tongue brush over his shoulder before he was nudged forward. Sam found himself in front of the small kit again, who was sitting in between Mai's paws.

"Sa, this is Natsumi. She is only a year old, so she does not know better. She was just trying to play with you. Maybe you could show her how it's done." Akira said.

Sam studied the little kit. Natsumi stared back, her bright yellow eyes showing curiosity, her ears forward and attentive.

"Wh-what am I supposed to do?" Sam asked, looking back at Akira.

"How about a game of tag?" Akira smiled down at Sam.

Sam looked back at Natsumi, who shifted impatiently. Sam had never really played with another kitsune. He slowly lowered himself and crept forward and then tapped Natsumi's shoulder before jumping away on his hind legs in fox play. Sam landed on all fours and lowered himself in downward dog, inviting the other small kit to play. Natsumi immediately engaged in play, chasing after Sam. Sam trotted away a bit before allowing Natsumi to catch up to him. The little kit lifted both front paws and hoped a couple steps before hitting Sam with one of her paws. She turned and leaped away, Sam following after her while the two parents happily watched their kits.

Later that night, Akira led Sam down a tunnel while Mai took Natsumi down the one she had retrieved the kit from. Sam discovered that at the end of the various tunnels was another opening, albeit smaller than the main section. There was one more tunnel connected to the smaller opening which Akira said was an emergency exit. Akira settled Sam in before leaving with Mai on a hunt.

Sam had been asleep for two hours before waking with a start and a bit disoriented. He recalled that he was with a new family. Sam crawled through the tunnel and back into the main section. He didn't see the larger foxes and figured they were still hunting. Sam began crawling up the large main tunnel, sliding down several times. He had to hop up sections in order to gain a hold of the dirt. It took him about twenty minutes just to see moonlight. He crawled the last couple feet and looked out the entrance. Akira and Mai were sitting outside the entrance, their backs to the den. Sam ad been hoping to leave the den for some air, but he wasn't sure how the two foxes would take to his being up and out.

The two foxes were sitting side by side, Mai clearly the smaller of the two.

"And I finally managed to trap the hunters behind large walls of fire. I left with Samuru then." Sam heard Akira say.

"And you're sure about this?" Mai asked.

"Like I said, I found him in human form. No young kit is able to shapeshift or really do anything until they are an adult. And that's not until they are a hundred years old. And the star on his chest."

Sam looked down at the white star surrounded by red fur on his chest. He knew that most kitsune had typical fox markings, black paws, black tipped ears, white chest and stomach, but he had never really paid any attention to the small detail he had.

"It's just fur. It may not be the usual fox markings, but it really is just fur, Akira."

"Maybe. But Mai, you do believe that he is too young to be able to shift, do you not?"

"Definitely. I don't know of any other kitsune who could shift at that young of an age."

"And I've never seen atypical markings in kitsune. He is different. And if his parents aren't Ninetails, then that kit is a mystery of life. I wonder what else he is capable of, or if he even knows how dangerous he might be."

"Samuru is a kit, Akira!" Mai growled. Sam could see her teeth from where he was. "He is not dangerous. He just needs a home and loving parents who are there for him and-"

"Training." Akira cut in. "A lot of training. He has a temper and it took physical force from me just to get him to shift. He will need to learn to obey his elders, if only for his safety. I will also work with him on anger management. He gets an attitude when under stress and I could smell the tension he was under when I set him down away from the village."

"If that is what he needs, so be it." Mai agreed. "We do not know for sure if his parents were Ninetails, not without his confirmation. However, even if he is, he will be our son and we will treat him as so."

"Of course." Akira agreed.

A small bug flew to Sam and landed on his nose. Sam twitched his nose before he sneezed violently. Akira and Mai both spun around, standing slightly, their five and four tails trailing behind them. Sam quickly lowered himself, trying to hide.

"Samuru, come forward." Akira's stern, deep voice called to him.

Sam hesitated, but after a moment, he stood to his feet and crept towards the two larger foxes. He stopped before them. Mai had sat back down, her four tails lifted behind her, the white tips flicking. She stared down at Sam with a smile on her lips, her yellow eyes bright and her ears were up but turned so that the black tips revealed themselves. Akira also sat, however, he lifted three tails behind him and two around him. His ears were pivoted to the side and his head was tilted slightly.

"How did you climb out?" Akira asked.

"I just – uhh, I – climbed out." Sam said hesitantly, almost phrasing it like a question.

Akira seemed to give a pointed look at Mai, who merely fluttered her eyes at him with that same smile on her face. Akira sighed.

"A den's entrance tunnel is made steep and narrow so that predators do not try to climb in and that kits do not try to climb out." Akira stated.

Mai smiled down at Sam, but she did nod to what Akira was saying, her ears pivoted back and her neck a bit arched in a sweet manner.

"Umm, sorry." Sam said.

"Do not feel the need to apologize, Samuru." Mai lowered her head and nuzzled Sam. "And there is no need to be so nervous around Akira or I. Trust me, Akira's bark is worse than his bite."

Akira huffed, but he gave Mai a playful nudge and nuzzled Sam as well. Sam smiled at all the attention. His own parents had always been more concerned on hiding and keeping Sam safe than they were of showing affection. Sam enjoyed this new aspect of parenting.

Mai gently lifted Sam by his scruff. Akira gave a gentle lick to Sam's forehead.

"Goodnight, Sa. And stay in your den." Akira said. Sam nodded.

Mai carried Sam back down the tunnel.

* * *

Sam paused his story when Harry raised a hand. He did not understand the gesture but gave Harry a curious look, flicking his ears and tilting his head to the side.

"What did Akira mean by a child of Ninetails?" Harry asked. Severus merely raised an eyebrow in question.

 _: Ninetails, also known as the Golden Foxes, are kitsune with all nine tails grown. They are very rare, and usually turn gold in color, though that is a slow process. I remember my parents were still very red when they shifted. Ninetails are very powerful, and if they are to have children, the kits are said to be abnormally powerful as well. It is a myth, but I did have abilities most kitsune don't have at a young age, though they were few and not nearly like the abilities mentioned in myths._ Sam answered.

"What were your abilities, Sam?" Severus asked. "The ones that differed you from other kits."

 _: My ability to shift to human form was the big one. Though I never felt the need to do so for a long time. I was also very strong for a small kit. That was really about it._

"How interesting." Severus rubbed his chin in thought. "I guess that makes you a special kitsune. I'd love to hear more, but I must really get back to grading. Not too much longer, Sam." Severus stood and left the room.

"Did you ever call Akira and Mai 'mom' and 'dad?'" Harry asked.

 _: I did. Okaasan is mother. Otousan is father._ Sam answered.

"Did you ever get in trouble with Akira? Did you get spanked, ever?" Harry asked with a cheeky smile.

Sam snorted.

 _: Foxes aren't really capable of spanking kits. However, Natsumi and I became inseparable and we managed to scout out trouble quiet often. We earned are fair share of nippings. I remember when I was just twenty-five years old, Natsumi was twenty, and the trouble we got in to . . ._

* * *

Sam snarled at Akira, circling the larger fox who snarled back. The sun was high in the sky. Even though he was still small enough to be scruffed, Sam believed that he could take Akira down. Sam stopped moving and lowered himself in a defensive posture. Akira braced himself for the attack. Sam charged.

Sam leaped at Akira's shoulder. Akira shuffled out of the way and mouthed Sam's neck when he was in range, careful not to bite with any exerted force. Sam rolled on to his back, not a very smart move in Akira's opinion, but Sam did manage to protect his neck by lowering his chin to his chest. Sam tried to nip at the fox's head, catching Akira's cheek in a rather rough bite. Akira didn't mind, having gotten used to sharp needle teeth from the kits. Akira shifted his attack from Sam's neck to Sam's stomach. He gently mouthed the white fur repeatedly. It was a ticklish feeling to Sam, who kicked repeatedly and tried to reach for Akira with his teeth.

Sam finally rolled away from Akira and stood on all fours, facing Akira once more. Akira allowed the small kit to pounce on him again. Sam bit down on as much of Akira's neck as he could, which wasn't a lot. Akira rolled onto his side and used his paws to reach for the little kit. He trapped Sam in his paws and mouth the kit's head, which fit perfectly in his mouth. Sam tried to bite at Akira's lower jaw while trying to wiggle out from under the large paws.

"Okaasan! Samuru and Otousan are fighting again!" Came a tiny voice.

Hoshiko, Samuru's eight-year-old sister. She was the second sister Samuru now had, along with Rini, the youngest and smallest, still just two-years-old.

Akira and Samuru pulled apart upon hearing Hoshiko's call, both sitting down. Akira smiled at the little kit who was running to find Mai. Samuru groaned.

"Tattletale. Why did you have to give me more sisters, Otousan? Why can't I have brothers?" Sam growled.

"Hey, I did the best I could." Akira smirked. "You know you love your sisters."

Sam huffed.

"Akira! What have I told you about fighting with your son?" Mai said as she approached the two, Hoshiko at her heels. "You could hurt him!"

"Okaasan, we were just playing." Sam complained as Mai lifted him by his scruff. "I'm okay, really."

"Now, dear . . ." Akira started.

"Oh, do not 'dear' me." Mai growled, still holding Sam. "We've talked about this, Akira."

"I know. He needs to learn at some point, though. Especially when vixens are involved." Akira said.

"At the rate kitsune are disappearing, there won't be many vixens to fight over. Besides, he's too young." Mai carried Sam away and back towards the den, where she set him down at the entrance. Natsumi sat at the entrance as well, watching over tiny Rini, who was busy teething on a rock as her back baby teeth were coming in. She looked at Sam as her mother laid down next to Rini, circling the small kit.

"What are you and Otousan in trouble for now?" Natsumi smirked, her ears turned outward and the white tip of her tail flicking.

"Just wrestling. We were fine until Hoshi told Okaasan. What was she doing anyway?" Sam sat next to Natsumi, his tail curling about him. Natsumi was pretty much the same size as he was, regardless of the five-year difference.

"Okaasan?" Natsumi looked up at her mother who was busy grooming Rini, the tiny cub enjoying the bath. "She was widening the dens and fixing up the emergency exit tunnels. She told me to keep Rini busy. But all Rini wanted to do was chew. So, who was winning the fight?"

"I was." Sam declared. "I almost had Otousan on his back begging for my mercy." Sam dropped in a bow posture, his tail giving a single wag.

"Otousan doesn't beg. And from what I saw, you were the one at his mercy." Natsumi showed her teeth in a foxy devil smile.

"What do you know about fighting?" Sam growled at his sister, his ears flopped down in a pout.

"Let me show you." Natsumi jumped on Sam knocking him over. She pinned him to the ground and bit down on his ear. Sam kicked her off and pounced on her, aiming his jaws for her scruff. Natsumi shook him off her back and the two continued their rough play.

"Oh, no-no, Natsumi!" Mai called to the two kits who were rolling farther away from the den. "That is very un-vixen like. Stop that! Come back here! Ugh. I blame you." Mai turned annoyed eyes on Akira who had approached the den. Akira paused in mid-step, the black tips of his ears pointing back.

"What on earth did I do?" Akira asked.

"Everything. Introduced fighting to our children." Mai stated, resuming her grooming of Rini.

"Ah, they're just roughhousing." Akira laid down near Mai and lifted Hoshiko to begin grooming her.

"Otousan, can I go play with Natsumi and Samuru, too?" Hoshiko asked as Akira dragged his tongue over her left side.

"Absolutely not!" Mai answered for Akira. Akira chuckled.

"Sorry, sweetheart." Akira gave Hoshiko another lick. "You're a little small to be in the midst of that kind of play."

Hoshiko pouted, her ears and head dropping, her tail miserably thumping once on the ground as she submitted to her bath.

Meanwhile, Natsumi and Samuru had managed to escape the eyes of their watchful parents as they continued to wrestle into the surrounding trees of the large forest. Natsumi pushed Sam off of her before something else caught her attention. Her ears stood forward and her tail stiffened as she spotted a strange looking creature.

"Sa, shh! Mite." Natsumi pointed with her nose and eyes as she stalked through the tall grass. "Tanuki."

Sam looked at what was holding his sister's attention. He spotted a lone tanuki, a raccoon dog, scavenging the forest floors. It was a funny looking creature, something between a raccoon and a fox. It had a gray bushy appearance, a bushy tail, black legs and a raccoon face. It was also a lot bigger than he and Natsumi.

"Let's ambush it." Natsumi whispered, her eyes never leaving the prey.

"Just me and you?" Sam asked, but joining his sister in stalking forward.

"Well, yeah." Natsumi said. "Two is better than one. We can do it."

The two small foxes continued to skulk forward in the tall grass. They were directly in front of the tanuki now, yet still hidden within the grass. The tanuki froze, its fur puffing out and its tail sticking straight out behind it. It looked at the grass, and Sam wondered if it could see them watching it.

"Ready, Sa." Natsumi wiggled in her place. "We're taking it in san, ni, ichi . . ."

"Wait, what's the plan of attack?" Sam asked.

"We're not wolves, Sa. Just go!" Natsumi shouted and ran forward after the tanuki, Sam right at her heels. The tanuki ran from the two little foxes, unsure of its odds with two foxes regardless of their size. Sam tried to run off to the side a bit in hopes of gaining on the raccoon dog.

"Isoide, Samuru!" Natsumi called to him. She was right behind the tanuki, nipping at its tail. Sam could hear her breathing hard, but his own breaths were heavy as well. Leaves rustled and fallen branches snapped under the paws of the running animals.

Sam was right at the tanuki's side and after a few long strides, he leaped out from the trees at the dog. The creature gave a sharp turn and Sam missed. The two foxes turned with the dog, chasing it down a new path. Finally, the creature scrambled up a tree, leaving the foxes behind on the forest grounds.

"We almost had it!" Natsumi declared, putting her front paws up on the tree, trying to spot where the tanuki had gone.

"We were so close! Maybe next time." Sam added.

"Where are we?" Natsumi jumped down and looked around the forest.

"I think we came from . . . that way." Sam said, looking to his left.

"How would you know? Everything looks the same." Natsumi tilted her head, listening to the sounds with her ears, the black tips quivering. Natsumi sniffed the air.

"I smell the river close by. We can't be that far from home. This way." Natsumi followed her nose to the north.

"You are aware that rivers are long, right?" Samuru said as he followed after her. There was only one river in the forest, along with several creeks, but the river was one their parents would fish at a lot.

"Trust me, I know what I'm doing." Natsumi said.

"A little overconfident for my taste." Sam stated.

The two foxes walked for nearly half an hour before they finally arrived at the river. Natsumi sniffed around the bank of the river. Samuru also sniffed around; the smell of fish made his stomach growl. He looked at Natsumi, who was confidently looking north, her black paws soaked in the shallow water she stood in, the white tip of her tail also soaking up water.

"If we follow this river, then take a left, we should be able to find our way back home." Natsumi said.

Sam stepped into the water, allowing himself to adjust to the cold but refreshing feel. He was a bit hot after their chase, and the cold river was cooling him off.

"Let's give it a go." Sam said. Sam looked down at the clear water, taking a long drink. He looked up just in time to see Natsumi disappear under the water.

"Natsumi!" Sam called to her. He saw his sister being carried away by the strong current and jumped through the water after her and nearly slipped on the slippery rocks. He figured that that was how Natsumi fell in.

"Samuru! Help me!" Natsumi cried.

"I'm coming, Sumi!"

Sam jumped out of the water and ran along the rocky banks. He ran as fast as he could, quickly catching up to his sister in the water. Natsumi's head repeatedly disappeared under the water, her paws thrashing around trying to paddle weakly.

"Help!" She cried.

Sam followed one large rock to its tip and jumped into the river. The current immediately pulled him under, dragging him down the stream, knocking the breath out of him. Sam naturally floated to the surface, where he began gasping for air. A harsh wave knocked him back under. Sam felt himself hit something hard and he was thrown further out towards the middle of the river. He rose to the surface once more, gasping, and this time getting a hang on his paddling. Sam struggled to stay above the waves of the thrashing current, but he looked around for Natsumi.

"Sa! Where are you?" He heard his sister call.

Sam looked ahead and saw his sister struggling in the water. He stroked forward after her, the current aiding him greatly. He opened his jaws and latched onto his sister's fur. He realized he was biting down roughly on her neck, and he could feel the fast pulse of veins and arteries on his tongue which told him that he did not have any of her scruff. However, he could not let his sister go.

They were both being forced down the river, Natsumi still crying out for help. Sam paddled as hard as he could, trying to drag himself and his sister towards the shore. The water proved to be stronger than either kit, and Sam and Natsumi were still forced down the rapids of the river.

Sam grunted as he hit something hard, but he quickly gathered his paws on the hard, slippery surface. It must have been a large rock under the water. Sam pushed back on the rock and he could feel Natsumi struggle to cling to the rock as well, her paws digging and scratching at it. Sam slowly felt his paws slipping on the rock and he groaned as he used all his strength to stay on it.

Suddenly, he felt larger paws pull his sister and himself closer together, and teeth closed down on the skin of their backs. Akira lifted the two kits as he stood on the rock he found them on in the middle of the river.

Akira eyed a large rock on the bank of the river. He gathered his legs under him, nearly slipping as he adjusted on the rock. He calculated how much force he would need to propel himself to the rock and leaped. He landed it, though the rock was slippery and he slid across it a bit but did not fall off. He collected himself and jumped off the rock and away from the river. Once the three foxes were a good distance away, Akira set them down and quickly nipped their rears once each. Sam and Natsumi yelped.

"Do you have any idea how worried your mother and I were?" Akira growled at them. The two kits turned around and sat in front of Akira, submissively lowering their heads and ears, dripping wet. "We've been looking all over for you! How many times have we told you to stay within our sight?"

"A lot." Natsumi and Sam muttered.

"Exactly." Akira snapped. "Instead, you two run off without a care in the world and fall into the river. You two could have been killed in the rapids."

"I had it under control." Sam dared to say aloud to himself, growling slightly. He winced when he saw Akira's angry eyes turn on him and started backing away and lowering himself more as Akira advanced towards him, snarling with all canines visible and his ears laid flat against his head.

"You would have fallen in, Samuru. I was there; I saw you slipping. Do not defy me."

"Yes, Otousan." Sam whined, his stomach touching the ground and his tail curling around his rear in hopes to prevent more nips as his father continued to growl at him.

"Akira!" Mai came running through the trees and stopped before the three foxes. She began sniffing her kits. "You found them! They're soaked!" Mai began licking the two kits dry, alternating between Natsumi and Sam.

"They were in the river." Akira shook himself dry, his fur puffing out from it. "Barely holding on to a rock." Akira gave Sam a look that dared him to argue. Sam said nothing.

"We've told you two not to run off. What were you thinking? You could have been hurt. You could have drowned." Mai lightly scolded. She sighed in relief. "At least you're safe now. Let's get them home, Akira." Mai lifted Natsumi, Akira lifted Sam, and the foxes began their walk home.

* * *

 _: Natsumi and I were grounded to the den for a week. We weren't allowed to leave our parents sight in that time. After the week was over, however, we were right back to our troublemaking selves._ Sam concluded. The fox scratched at one of his ears with a hind leg.

"Your sister sounds like a lot of fun." Harry commented, smiling softly.

"From the last bit I heard, it sounds as if your parents had their hands full with just you two without including your two younger sisters." Severus reentered the room with a small smirk. "It's time for bed, Harry."

"Thanks for the story, Sam." Harry said, snuggling into his blankets. He allowed his father to tuck him in and kiss his forehead. "You'll tell me more tomorrow, right?"

 _: Of course. Good night, Harry._ Sam jumped down and followed Severus into the hall.

"It sounds like you found a wonderful family." Severus said.

 _: I did. It was a wonderful family. But hunters were at their largest when I was a kit, and I should have known that they would have tracked us down eventually. It is a story for another night though. I must go out for a hunt. The deer in the Forbidden Forest are very tender._

"Good night, Sam." Severus nodded his head to the fox, slightly laughing at the last statement.

Sam grew to the size of a large wolf before misting away, leaving the Snape family to sleep for the night.

* * *

I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please review. Here are some Japanese words that were said in the story: Otousan – father; Okaasan – mother; San, na, ichi – Three, two, one; Mite – Look; Isoide – Hurry up


	3. Danger in our Midst

This story is about to take a turn. Enjoy the next chapter!

* * *

The Great Hall had just finished dinner, and Harry walked out the entrance doors of the large castle. He didn't walk too far away from the castle itself, just far down enough so he could look for his friend. The sky was darkening and the first stars were beginning to shine bright. The large forest surrounding Hogwarts grew noisy with its nightly sounds of screeches from hunting owls, cries of herd animals, and the soft growls of something large hiding in the trees. Harry could hear Fang barking all the way down at Hagrid's hut. Harry peered through the darkness, trying to see any bright colors.

"Sam!" Harry called. "Here, Sam!"

Harry listened for any noise, watched for any movement, but no fox appeared.

"Sam! Come on, Sam! Where are you?" Harry tried again.

"Harry, get in here." Harry heard his father call from the doors. "It is far too late for you to be out here alone."  
"I'm looking for Sam, Dad." Harry said, turning to face him. "I haven't seen him all day. He doesn't usually not show."

"We've only known him for a few weeks, Harry. This may become an occurring habit of his. And you can't be constantly looking for him on the edge of a panic attack. He'll show up when he wants to." Severus walked over to his son, draping an arm around his shoulders and leading him back inside. "Perhaps he'll arrive after you're all ready for bed."

Harry walked with his father down to their quarters. He changed into pajamas and threw slippers on. Then begged his father for a quick dessert when Severus asked him to brush his teeth.

"I said no."

"Please, Dad. Just one treacle tart? One tiny piece of one?" Harry asked, standing outside his father's study. He used his thumb and index to show just how tiny.

"You're pushing it, Harry." Severus scolded as he tried to focus on grading first-year essays. These particular essays were usually covered in ink blotches and had poor structure and formation, which made them difficult to read. _Damn students don't know how to properly use a quill._ "Go brush your teeth."

"You didn't let me have dessert at dinner. I've been good all week. I even got an O on my math homework, which never happens. And another O on my science project." Harry continued.

"And an A on your writing assignment." Severus countered.

"It was a boring topic. And there were only a few inky messes and I'm not great at spelling. It was one A." Harry whined.

"Harry, please." Severus looked up from the essay he was grading with a tired look. "Just, go brush your teeth. You'll live without a dessert for one night."

"No, I won't." Harry muttered under his breath as he walked to the bathroom. "I'm going to die a slow and painful death and all because you won't let me have a treacle tart."

Severus couldn't help the smirk as he watched his son head to the bathroom. He listened for the sound of water running before returning his attention on the essays. He stared at the essay, trying to make out the name. _Is that an 'A' or an 'O" or . . ._

 _: I believe the name is Adrian Pucey._

Severus, not completely caught off-guard, lowered his quill, and slowly reached for his wand, gripping it lightly in his fingers, listening for sounds in the room, trying to ignore the distracting words in his head.

"And how would you know?" Severus asked.

 _: It isn't completely terrible writing, sloppy and careless, but not bad. I myself didn't learn how to write until very recently. I never really needed to learn how to write. It wasn't nearly as important as learning skills that would keep me alive._

Severus heard a noise to his left, but he only glanced in the direction with his eyes. There was nothing there. Nothing that could be seen, anyway.

 _: But of course being a horrible writer myself, I've learned to make out terrible handwriting. Anything more fancy and you'll have me stumped. I can never read yours as a matter of fact. Too neat and sharp. You should try . . ._

Severus spun his chair around and fired a revealing charm at the bookshelf, the sound of books lightly leaning into each other from an invisible force catching his attention. The charm revealed the cat-sized fox that had used an illusion to make himself appear invisible. Sam grunted as the spell hit him and dramatically flipped off the books he had been walking on and fell to the ground. He began rolling on his back as if in terrible pain, his black paws straight up in the air. His three tails whipped in the opposite direction his body moved, the white tips thumping on the ground.

 _: He's killed me. Have mercy, great warlock. I offer you my services in return for spared life._

"You offered that last time." Severus smirked, shaking his head at the fox.

For some reason, Sam began victimizing Severus in a silly game of "try and find me before I disrupt your study." Or office. Or bedroom. Sam would illusion himself to appear invisible and stalk around whatever room Severus may be in, usually a place where Severus didn't appear too busy in. Sam would bring up a nonsensical conversation in an attempt to distract Severus while Sam moved closer to him. The first couple of times, Severus had been unaware of what Sam was doing and carried on the conversations until he was either struck with a harmless ball of bright light that momentarily blinded him or was struck physically with Sam's three tails. The past few times, Severus had managed to fire a charm or harmless spell at the fox, catching him in the act.

Severus didn't mind the games. They helped hone his senses, strengthening them, and he was sure they did the same to the fox's senses, as well as help Sam practice his hunting or his sneakiness.

"Why don't you play these games with Harry?" Severus asked, fixing his chair and returning to his grading.

 _: The kid doesn't know how to use his senses yet. And he's too full of questions to try and carry on a conversation with. I end up being the one distracted._

"You've tried?" Severus looked down at the fox that came to sit next to his chair, growing to the size of a Labrador dog.

 _: Tried and failed. He kept asking where I was and when I would be back. Then he asked a bunch of questions related to math. I answered whatever he asked and decided to just go for you._

"That little sneak!" Severus shook his head. "You know, most parents complain about their kids feeding the dogs at the table, not cheating on their homework with the dogs."

 _: I'm not a dog. And I shall try to encourage him to answer the questions himself next time._

"Dad! I'm done." Harry called.

"Plan on continuing your story?" Severus said as he stood from his desk. He began walking out of the study and towards his son's room.

 _: I guess. The next part of my story isn't particularly happy._ Sam trotted next to Severus, his ears falling slightly, the black tips quivering.

"If you don't want to discuss it, you could skip it entirely." Severus said, noting the fox's uneasiness.

 _: And confuse the little human? I can tell it. I just need a good place to start. Perhaps the happier moments._ Sam ears perked up the smallest bit.

As the two entered Harry's room, Harry smiled at Sam, sitting up in his bed.

"There you are, Sam." Harry watched as Sam jumped onto the foot of his bed, sitting in his usual spot. Severus laid next to Harry. "Where were you?"

 _: Hunting._ Sam said. _There are some strange creatures in that forest. None of which I succeeded in catching._

"You don't want to eat anything in there, anyway. I take Harry home to practice his hunting." Severus said, brushing hair out of his son's eyes.

 _: Yes, I remember visiting your place when I was looking for the source of . . . some kind of magical connection I felt._ Sam discreetly winked at Harry. _You two had already left for this castle, but I gave myself a tour of your manor and the forest surrounding it. I discovered some delicious deer, though the doe put up quite a fight._ Sam licked his lips in memory.

"Quite unnerving to hear that I had an intruder in my home." Severus gave the fox a pointed glare. "Even so, you should join Harry and I on our hunts. You could even help give Harry some pointers."

"Yeah! That would be fun!" Harry said.

 _: Sounds like a plan. As my father used to say – hunting is an art . . ._

* * *

". . . And a fine one at that." Akira told sixty-year-old Samuru. The kit was still only half Akira's size when he himself was the size of a normal fox, considering that kits can't change their size until at least a hundred years old. However, Sam was now old enough to learn how to hunt. Sam trotted alongside his father as they entered the forest.

Sam had never really learned how to hunt in his previous life. He had survived solely on his street smarts and thievery. Now that he had a father to teach him the tricks, Sam wanted to learn as much as he could from him. Akira had already shared so much wisdom with him and hunting would be one more added to the list.

"Calm down, Samuru. You don't want any prey to sense your excitement." Akira lowered himself in the tall grass, peering out at an open clearing of short grass and flowers. "Hush down and prepare to pounce."

Sam copied his father's stance. When he believed he mirrored Akira, he growled softly in excitement.

"Sa, hush! What did I say?" Akira scolded lightly.

"Sorry."

"Now, when something passes through here, preferably a rabbit, allow it the chance to become completely calm in its surroundings, and when it's nibbling on a flower, pounce on it. Alright?"

"Got it." Sam said, his tail offering a quick wag. "Let it become calm, nibble a flower, pounce."

"Here comes one now." Akira said.

Sam watched as a small, gray cottontail hopped along slowly into the clearing, hesitantly sniffing around, it's small pink nose and white whiskers twitching. Sam glanced at Akira, but the larger fox had somehow disappeared. Sam swiveled his head around trying to find him but quickly froze when he realized the rabbit had jumped at the sudden movement in the tall grass.

Sam kept still as the rabbit remained motionless, seemingly staring right at him. Sam hardly breathed. After a moment, the rabbit's nose began twitching. Another moment and the rabbit hopped over to a small purple flower, but it still looked over in Sam's direction. It seemed to turn its head as if trying to focus one eye on anything that could be hidden in the tall grass. It hesitantly nibbled at the flower, pulling a petal off and chewing it in its mouth while staring in Sam's direction.

 _It's nibbling!_ Sam thought. He prepared to pounce, showing his teeth slightly. _That counts right?_

Sam leaped out of the trees and opened his mouth to snatch the rabbit's throat. The small cottontail scrambled on its feet for a moment before darting under the fox and leaping away. Sam fell to the hard ground, shutting his mouth a moment too late and hitting his lower jaw hard on the floor, the rest of his face following. Sam flipped a couple times from his overpowered leap and landed up against a tree, upside down, his tail covering his stomach and burying his nose in the white tips.

Sam could hear Akira laughing. Sam pulled his nose out of the hairs of his tail and threw his head back against the rough ground and stared at his upside father, watching the fox roll around in a fit of amusement. Embarrassed, Sam allowed himself to fall over so he could right himself. He growled at Akira, his ears laid flat and his tail curling about him in humiliation.

"Stop laughing at me! It's not funny!" Sam snarled, flashing his teeth and his fur bristling.

"Temper, Samuru. Watch it or I'll nip you." Akira growled, standing.

"Yes, Otousan."

Akira trotted over towards Sam, sitting down in front of his son.

"Tell me what you did wrong." Akira said, looking down at Sam with alert ears.

"The prey wasn't calm." Sam guessed, hunching his shoulders a bit and letting his ears tilt to the side. Just in case he was wrong.

"Yes. That, and you put a little too much force behind your leap. But more importantly, that rabbit was expecting you. It was wary of its surroundings."

"But it was nibbling."

Akira sighed, his eyes closing momentarily. An idea came to mind and he opened his eyes again.

"Yes, but the rabbit was still looking for danger." Akira said, standing once more. "You don't want your prey to know what's going on; to know that you are hiding in the grass, the bushes, the trees."

Akira tightly circled around Sam, gesturing with a tilt of his head to the various places a fox could ambush another animal. Sam looked around, imagining himself in every spot, spying on an innocent creature. Akira began to widen his circle around Sam bit by bit as he kept talking.

"Your prey should feel completely secure in its surroundings, unaware of the foreboding presence around, the impending danger it is about to face, the sudden death it will suffer." Akira slightly snarled d at Sam to emphasize his point.

Sam, greatly enthused, snarled back playfully, though he remained where he sat, watching his father and absorbing the new knowledge eagerly.

"You want your prey to feel as though everything is completely normal. To feel safe in the open field, to be relaxed." Akira took a slow, deep breath in through his nose, closing his eyes and holding the air for a moment before slowly letting it out through his mouth, sighing contently.

Sam copied his father, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. He held it for a moment before slowly letting it out. He sighed as Akira did, letting his eyes remain closed for a moment more, smiling as he allowed the last bit of any temper he had in him fade. He felt his muscles relax. He could do this hunting thing. He opened his eyes.

"Okay. I think I'm ready to . . ." Sam began but stopped when he didn't see his father. "Otousan?" Sam slanted one ear as he slowly glanced around for his father, standing slightly.

Suddenly, he was forced to the ground and onto his back by a quick, strong force and pinned to the ground. White teeth were inches from his face as the creature snarled at him, it's ears flat against its head and only a single paw pushing down on Sam's chest, keeping him down.

And just as quickly, the thing stopped snarling and smirked in a devilish way, it's black lips curling and its ears pushing forward. The white teeth had disappeared and Sam looked up at his father.

"See how that works?" Akira asked slyly.

"Otousan!" Sam cried indignantly.

Sam struggled to get up and Akira removed his paw and allowed Sam to chase after him, laughing as he leaped away from the half embarrassed, half amused kit. Akira stopped a few feet ahead of Sam and dropped into a bow, snarling at the approaching cub. He allowed Sam to tackle him to the ground, mouthing the fox a few times as he captured him in his paws. Sam growled and tried to squirm out of the hold. Akira jumped to his feet once more and jumped away.

The two foxes chased each other for a few minutes in the trees until they ran into Mai and Natsumi near the river. The girls were also normal fox-sized. Mai had also earned her fifth tail about twenty years back. Natsumi was dripping wet, but she looked very happy, her ears forward and her white chest puffed out. She was roughly the same size as Sam.

"Akira, you won't believe what your daughter did!" Mai began excitedly. "She snagged a trout on her first try! It pulled her right into the water, the dear thing, but she held on with those jaws and she snapped its spine as I taught her. I was ready to jump in after her, but she kept mumbling over her mouthful that she could do it. All I could do was shout at her to be careful and if she was sure she was alright. I mean look at the trout! Her first fishing lesson!"

Sam looked over at the large fish his sister had caught. It was probably a good seven or eight pounds, not the biggest fish he had seen his parents catch, but large for a fox Natsumi's size to kill. And it was definitely bigger than any fish he had ever caught during his fishing trips with Mai or Akira.

"My, what a catch. That's my girl, you let those dogs out there know that a vixen can take care of herself." Akira ruffled Natsumi's head with his chin. Natsumi gave a single wag of her tail and opened her mouth in a huge foxy smile before shaking herself once more, spraying water on everyone.

"How's the first hunting lesson going?" Mai asked, smiling at Samuru.

"Ah, we're working on it." Akira smiled down at Sam as well before looking back at Mai. "It's a jump from fishing, but he'll get the hang of it. He's a clever fox."

"Do you smell that?" Natsumi said as she sat in front of Sam. She dramatically sniffed the air. "Smells like . . . a champion of fishing is in your presence! Oh, Sa, are you feeling well? You look a little green . . . with envy!" Natsumi laughed.

"Ah, beginner's luck." Sam retorted. He might be a little jealous but there was no way he was telling his sister that.

"Just wait till I start hunting. Maybe I'll have a little 'beginner's luck' and catch something on my first try, too." Natsumi said, fluttering her eyes at Sam confidently.

"Fishing's easy. Hunting takes skill. Practice." Sam argued, tossing his head up in the air away from his sister, closing his eyes.

"Just a couple more years, Sa. And we'll see just how skillful you have to be at hunting." Natsumi trotted to her prized fish and tried to pick it up in her jaws. The head and tail of the fish dragged on the ground as she tried to pull it forward by the back.

"Careful, Sumi. Allow me." Akira grew to the size of a large wolf and picked up the trout. He carefully followed the smaller foxes.

Sam followed behind Akira, upset that his lesson was momentarily over. He was still a bit upset that Natsumi had caught a fish on her first fishing lesson and he had yet to hunt down anything. The foxes returned to the den and Mai crawled down the entrance, leaving Akira and the two kits with the large fish.

Akira laid the fish down and shrunk back to normal size. He opened his mouth and breathed a gentle flow of fire on the fish. The smell of cooked fish rushed into Sam's nose and he licked his lips hungrily.

"I want the head! I want the head! I caught it; I should get the head!" Natsumi barked, rising up on her hind legs and holding a begging puppy pose.

"Of course, you get the head. It is your catch, after all, sweetheart." Akira bit down on the neck and thrashed his head, decapitating the fish. Sam huffed. The head was usually the best part of the fish, with the interesting textures from the eyes and the brain, the meaty flesh of cooked muscle and tissue. However, if Sam was going to be fair, he supposed Natsumi did deserve the head.

Mai returned with Rini and Hoshiko in her jaws, having grown to the size of a large wolf in order to carry both kits. Mai shrunk once more after putting the two kits down.

"Natsumi caught her first fish! I want to see it! I want to see it!" Rini cried running over to see the large trout.

"Look at the size of it!" Hoshiko added. "I bet it's just full of juicy, tender meat."

The foxes ate the fish until all that remained was the skeletal features, which Mai and Akira chomped on while the kits rested their full stomachs.

"And for dinner, I'm catching us a large, plump rabbit." Sam told his two younger sisters.

"Really? Yummy." Hoshiko licked her lips. "We haven't had rabbit in a week now. And they're usually the easiest for Otousan and Okaasan to catch."

"If you catch the rabbit, can I have the back legs?" Rini asked.

Sam smiled at his youngest sister. He adored Rini. She was small, innocent, sweet and very much like their mother. Rini looked up to Sam and would follow him around everywhere. Sam had at one point gotten annoyed with her constant following and snapped at her to leave him alone and (hardly, might Sam add) nipped her ear. Rini had cried to their parents, and Akira had given him three nips to his rear. Besides the punishment, Akira also told Sam that Rini adored her big brother and that she only wanted to please Sam by trying to do the same things he did. Sam tried his best to never lash out at Rini again.

"Of course, Rini." Sam answered the pleading eyes. Rini's black lips curled into a small, shy smile. The hind legs of a rabbit were usually very tender and delicious, but Sam would give that up for Rini.

"That would mean that Samuru has to actually catch a rabbit." Natsumi interrupted, sitting down next to Sam. "Otousan is having the time of his life telling Okaasan about how you missed your first catch." Natsumi smirked.

"Eavesdropper," Sam growled at her.

"Lousy hunter." Natsumi returned. "Can I start calling you Flipsy? That's going to be your new nickname." Natsumi decided.

"Don't you dare call me that!"

"What are you going to do about it, Flipsy?"

Sam pushed his sister down, but Natsumi, expecting the attack, crawled out from under her brother and attacked him from the side, knocking him over. Sam kicked with his hind legs, throwing his sister off of him and quickly got to his feet. The two continued to wrestle each other.

"Natsumi, what have I told you about that!" Mai called from her place, quickly swallowing the last of the small fish bones.

"How she teases Sa. I'm surprised he's never really taken offense to anything she's ever said or teased him about, knowing his temper." Akira watched the two kits tousle, noting how gentle the stronger kit was when playing with his sister.

"Yes, it is an improvement. You've taught our little Sa well, Akira. But I'm doing a horrible job with Natsumi. She's a vixen, she needs to start acting like one. She's too . . ." Mai searched for the right words.

"Tomboyish?" Akira supplied.

"Yes. Too tomboyish. Fighting is for dogs." Mai tilted her head to the side in thought, staring at Akira.

"That's our Natsumi, Mai. I don't think she'll ever stop being a little tomboy. She's always had that spitfire in her from the time she was born. That will never change." Akira commented.

"Speaking of things never changing, the hothead and the spitfire have disappeared," Mai commented, smirking at Akira.

Akira groaned loudly, closing his eyes and dropping his head.

* * *

Natsumi and Sam trotted through the trees, crawling under shrubs and through thickets. A thorn scraped Sam's side as he wriggled under a rosebush after his sister. He hissed at the sharp pain but it faded quickly. He stopped next to Natsumi who was scanning the trees for a rabbit. They had decided to challenge each other to see who could catch a rabbit first. While their parents were talking, they quickly made their escape.

"Do you see a rabbit?" Natsumi asked.

"Nah. Do you?" Sam said.

"I wouldn't have asked you if I did, would I?" Natsumi stated. "What's that?"

Sam followed his sister's gaze and saw flashes of gray, black, red, and yellow colors moving through the trees. Several objects sparkled in the sunlight. The colors moved closer towards Sam and Natsumi.

Keeping low to the ground, Sam crept towards the colors, Natsumi staying close to his side. When they were right in front of the strange colors, concealed within the shrubs and thickets, Sam gasped. Humans. Men. Hunters. Twelve of them.

They wore long pants despite the hot weather and carried all sorts of weapons: long blades, old types of guns (as those were the kinds up to date), bows and arrows, and knives. They were all Japanese, except for one dirty blond-haired man. This man wasn't a native, but Sam watched him, even though his back was turned to them. Sam strained to listen to what they were saying.

"We've searched these woods for years and I have never seen kitsune in it." One man said to the non-native.

"We've got a few dogs searching around. They'll howl if they smell something." Another man said.

"Why would kitsune be so far out in these woods? We are not that far from the mountains. It must get cold and dreadful at times." Yet another native said. He used a small cloth to clean his long blade.

"I'm sure it was a means of survival, to come out so far and remain hidden." A shorter native wearing a yellow vest like cloth spoke.

"What if we run into Ninetails out here?" The first man who had spoken said. "I hear they are deadly."

"I've killed Ninetails before." The dirty blond man finally spoke. "Over fifty years ago. They tried foxfire, illusions . . . but they were already so weak from days of fighting and running. It was too easy."

The blond turned and Sam gasped. The man had grey eyes and Sam was suddenly hit with a memory of when Akira had saved him, and a long lost memory of who his parents were trying to hide him from. It couldn't be the same man. That man should be dead after all these years. It wasn't possible.

"There are a couple things you men should know before facing a kitsune. When it opens its mouth, raise your shield. When it swings its tails at you, cut them off. Be aware of all of your surroundings, they can illusion themselves to blend in and move objects from a far distance. But most importantly, never look into a kitsune's eyes. If you happen to fall into an illusion, fight it. Don't believe anything you see." The grey-eyed man concluded.

"Yes sir." The other eleven said together.

"One more thing. If we come across a family, remember, I want the oldest kit . . . alive. It'll make a wonderful addition to my collection. And when I have tamed and trained it, I can use the powers it will have when it reaches its hundred years' mark."

Howling could be heard in the distance.

"Let's move." The leader of the group barked. "You know my orders."

The several men began heading north.

Sam was breathing heavy and Natsumi was shaking slightly.

"Are you okay, Sa?" Natsumi asked. She looked at her brothers, near frozen stature, his wide eyes, and heavy breath. Sam nodded slowly as he pulled himself out of the flashback of the man who had hunted his parents and was now hunting his family.

"Yeah, I'm okay." Sam breathed in deeply.

"We have to warn Otousan and Okaasan. Come, Sa." Natsumi said.

Samuru and Natsumi turned around and began working their way back to the den. However, as they crawled under a shrub, a man froze at the sight of them on the other side. Sam and Natsumi both gasped as the native turned his gun towards them. He must have been a part of the group, a thirteenth man who may have been scouting the area. The two kits snarled at the man, their fur bristling. The man seemed to smirk at them.

The sound of running caught everyone's attention, and they watched as Akira jumped over the shrubs and landed before the man, blocking his children from view. He was once again the size of a large wolf. He didn't snarl or growl at the man, nor was his fur bristled.

 _: Look into my eyes_. Sam heard the words enter his head. He watched as his father stared at the man, straight into the dark, nearly black eyes. _Look into my eyes_. The words said again.

Akira's eyes were changing, Sam noticed. The yellow in his eyes were swirling like paint being mixed, and Akira's pupils were dilating and constricting quickly and repeatedly. The man fell to his knees in a trance, maintaining eye contact with the fox. His own eyes were acting similar to Akira's. The colors swirling and the pupils growing and shrinking.

 _: Look into my eyes._ Akira spoke through the mind one final time.

And then there was silence for a moment as the two merely stared at each other, Akira slowly advancing on the man. When the two were directly nose to nose, Akira finally broke the eye contact and latched on to the man's throat and snapped the neck. The man fell to the ground dead.

Akira turned to his kits who were awed at the strange power that had just taken place. The two snapped out of their own trance and began talking at once.

"Otousan, there's more. There were so many, with strange shiny things! They're looking for us! They're going to kill us!" Natsumi cried.

"Otousan, we saw hunters. They're all armed and they brought dogs. They're looking for us! They're going to find us." Sam cried.

"Hush, hush. It's going to be alright." Akira nuzzled the two kits. "Sa, what did you say you saw."

"Hunters, Otousan. About a dozen. They mentioned dogs." Sam answered.

"Male foxes?" Natsumi asked, tilting her head to the side.

"No, Sumi." Akira said. "A different kind of dog. Hunting dogs. Trained to track . . . and kill foxes."

Natsumi began whimpering, tears forming in her eyes. Sam remained quiet, fearful of reliving a similar nightmare.

"Come children. We have to get back to the den. Quickly." Akira led the kits back home, making sure to slow his leaps so the kits could keep up with him. They weren't too far from the den and arrived in less than a minute.

"Mai!" Akira called. The vixen stood to all fours in front of the den.

"Akira, what's happened?" Mai asked, watching her mate run quickly to the den, their two kits close behind. "What is it?"

"Get Rini and Hoshiko inside. Quickly!" Akira nosed Rini toward the den and used two of his tails to lead Hoshiko over. Sam and Natsumi sat and waited, anxiously looking around.

"Akira . . ." Mai pushed Akira off of Rini by shoving her snout against his. She finally got his attention and gave him a concerned look, her ears falling back and her eyes squinting slightly as she stared up at him. Akira sighed and looked at his two youngest girls and then back at Mai.

"Hunters." Akira answered. Mai gasped. "Possibly a good dozen. I've already killed one, but the rest may have dogs with them."

"No." Mai shook her head in disbelief. "This can't be happening. No. We were so far out."

"We'll be alright. Come, let's get all the kits into the den. I'll collapse the hut and cover the escape exits. Go!"

Mai grew to the size of a large wolf and picked up Rini and Hoshiko by their scruffs. Rini began whimpering and tried to turn to see her father.

"What about you, Otousan." Rini cried.

"I'll be down, don't worry." Akira assured, giving both kits a quick lick.

Mai crawled down into the tunnel with the kits. Akira walked behind the hut like structure of branches, grass, and leaves.

"Samuru, help your sister." He said.

"Come, Sumi." Sam said pausing at the entrance and waiting for her.

"Shouldn't we wait for Okaasan?" Natsumi asked, staring down into the steep darkness.

"Just slide down. I do it all the time." Sam assured her. "Ready?"

Natsumi nodded and together the two kits slid down the entrance to the den. Sam could hear the crumbling of the branches as their father forced the hut to fall, covering the large hole in the ground. Sam and Natsumi fell into the main den as a couple sticks came tumbling down with them. Sam covered his sister as dirt, rocks and sticks fell on them. Standing, the two kits stared at the entrance that was now closed off. The only way out would soon be the five exit tunnels that led to different areas of the forest.

Mai and the two younger kits were huddled together in a corner of the den. The younger kits were shaking and whining. Sam and Natsumi joined the huddle, sitting in front of Mai.

"Are we going to die?" Hoshiko asked. Rini cried harder.

"Nonsense, Hoshi, we will be fine. We have an escape system if we need it, and you four will run where?" Mai asked.

"To the den by the river." All four kits replied. They had practiced the run a few times throughout the years.

"Very good." Mai said. "Your father and I will fight off who we can and then we will join you."

"And if you don't?" Natsumi asked, her ears falling and her shoulders hunching a bit. "Join us, I mean."

Mai stared at her for a moment, her eyes serious and her ears forward.

"Then take care of your sisters." Mai finally said. Natsumi gulped. "Samuru."

Sam couldn't look at his mother. He couldn't lose his family again. Not for a second time. And he was still too small to even attempt to help stop it from happening.

"Samuru. Look at me." Mai encouraged. Tears fell from Sam's eyes. He didn't want to hear what Mai wanted to tell him. He didn't want any of this to be a possibility. He sniffed a few times.

"Sa." Came a deeper voice. Sam looked over to see Akira standing at the tunnel that led to his and Mai's section of the den, his ears forward and his head tilted slightly. Sam looked back at the ground before staring up at his mother. Mai sighed when she saw that Sam was finally looking at her.

"If anything happens to your father and I, and we do not return to the den by the river, you have to promise us that you will take care of your sisters. Promise us." Mai said, stretching her neck so her face was closer to Sam's. Akira entered the den and sat close to Sam, waiting for his answer.

Sam looked up at his father, who offered a small smile. He glanced at Natsumi, who quickly averted her head, tears of her own falling from her tightly closed eyes. Sam looked back up at his mother and slowly nodded.

"I promise. I will take care of my sisters. Always and forever." Sam promised.

Mai smiled at him and gave him a gentle lick on his snout, while Akira licked the top of his head.

"Thank you, Sa." Mai said. "I promise you, all of you, that your father and I will defend our family to the best of our ability. We will try to make it to that den alive."

"I know this will be hard, children. But I have faith in all of you. Your mother and I love you all." Akira said.

Sam lowered his head once more, leaning against his father. Natsumi had moved to lay next to their mother and it was silent for a few moments. And then the sound of barking came.

Akira stood to his feet and looked up, his ears forward.

"Children, lower your heads." Akira commanded.

Sam crouched low to the ground, as did everyone else. Akira opened his mouth and let out a jet of fire that covered the entire ceiling of their den. The flames licked the fur of everyone inside. Akira breathed one more flame in the main entrance tunnel. The entire den smelled strongly of char and smoke, the fox smell completely disappeared. Sam coughed being the only one not burying his nose in Mai's fur. Akira moved next to him, using his head to gently pull Sam against him. Sam kept his nose in his father's fur, ignoring the tickling feeling the soft fur was causing. The barking continued for a few more seconds before it grew quiet once more.

The entire fox family remained silent and frozen.

Then something zipped down the main entrance and into the center of the den. An arrow with a flaming tip. Barking started up again, along with howling, and two more flaming arrows joined the first.

"They know we're down here! Everyone move!" Akira ordered. Mai pushed Hoshiko and Rini to the appropriate tunnel while Akira disappeared down his. Natsumi and Sam ran to the other side of the den.

"Samuru, I'm scared." Natsumi confessed.

"Be brave, Sumi." Sam encouraged. "I'll see you at the den."

Sam smiled softly and Natsumi nodded, offering a small smile. Then the two kits charged into their dens and ran to the escape tunnels.

Sam took a deep breath, trying to muster up bravery himself, before charging forward.

* * *

"What happened next? What happened!" Harry asked.

"Harry." Severus slightly admonished. Severus watched the fox closely. Sam had stopped talking altogether. He was probably thinking about how to continue his story. Or if he even could.

 _: I can't do this._ Sam finally said. _Not tonight. I need to rest. Think it over. I'm sorry._

Sam leaped off the bed, his ears down head lowered, retreating to the living room where the large dog bed of his lay, his tails dragging behind him.

"Is Sam okay, Dad?" Harry asked Severus.

"He's okay, Harry. Just reaching a hard part of the story to tell. If he's ready tomorrow, he'll tell it. And that's if he's ready." Severus said.

"Okay, Dad. Goodnight." Harry said.

"Goodnight, son."

Severus gave Harry a quick kiss before leaving the room. He walked out into the living room and found the fox lying on the dog bed, his eyes closed, his ears still back, and his three tails curled up around him. Severus squatted in front of the bed and reached out a hand to stroke the fox's head, something he had never done with Sam, but had seen Harry do a couple times. Sam opened his eyes and watched Severus.

 _: I believe I've told you that I am not a dog._ The fox said though he didn't move.

"You're not resisting." Severus retorted. "I thought you'd like a little company. You really are an incredible fox. I'm sure your parents are very proud of how far you've come."

Severus gave the fox one last stroke before standing and heading to his bed.

 _: Severus_.

Severus turned and looked at the fox who had propped himself up on his front legs.

 _: Thank you._ The fox bowed his head for a couple seconds before looking back up.

"You're welcome." Severus smiled.

* * *

Read and review! I know, it's a horrible cliffhanger, tell me what you think will happen.


	4. Gone Without Goodbye

Here is my next chapter. I hope you enjoy!

* * *

Sam hadn't continued his story in a week. The fox kept to his usual playful self, but he seemed distant at times, and Harry wondered if he would ever continue his story. When Harry asked Sam to continue about two days after the last telling, Sam had decided to leave on a hunt. Harry was upset, but Severus had walked in and told Harry a childhood story of a time with Lily.

So far, Severus had been the storyteller at night for the last six nights. Harry loved his father's stories, especially when his mother was included. His father even told a story that had Lily and the Marauders. It was when everyone had called a truce and the six were playing Quidditch: Lily, Severus and Remus against James, Sirius, and Peter. Apparently, Lily had won the game for her team and she had gone on about 'girl power' for the rest of the evening. Harry laughed at that story. Severus always seemed able to make him smile or laugh.

Tonight would be the seventh night, and Sam was nowhere in sight. It was nearing Harry's bedtime. Harry was busy coloring his drawings of Sam's family at the coffee table in front of the couch. He wanted to surprise Sam with the pictures.

"Dad?" Harry looked over to where his father was busy grading essays in his armchair.

"Yes, son." Severus answered without looking up.

"Why doesn't Sam want to continue his story? Is it really sad?" Harry wondered. He could take an accurate guess that the next part of Sam's story would be sad, but he wanted to hear his father's words and opinion.

"I don't know, but if I had to guess, I'd say that yes, the next part of Sam's story is sad. Probably frightening. He may or may not share it with us." Severus said.

"But he has to, Dad. He can't just stop telling it. That's called a never-ending cliffhanger." Harry said. "Or a really bad book."

"Is that so?" Severus lifted his head up and smirked at Harry.

"Yes." Harry crossed his arms and pouted.

"Harry." Severus admonished. "You need to be more considerate with Sam. You may not remember your mother, but that doesn't mean you don't miss her any more than I do. You can relate to Sam in that matter."

Harry looked down at his drawings. He remembered living with his aunt and uncle in the previous reality. He never got to know his parents then either, but he missed them regardless. He remembered the Mirror of Erised which showed him his parents, his family, what he truly desired to have. What if he had gotten to know his parents and they were murdered at a later date, say when he was five or six. With memories, Harry was sure he would feel even more pain and more desire to have them back. He was very sad that Lily had died again when he was a baby in this reality, and he knew he would probably die from depression if anything happened to Severus.

"Sorry. I guess I didn't think of that." Harry finally said. "But Sam didn't say he lost anyone."

"Regardless, you can assume that he probably did." Severus replied.

"I guess." Harry returned to coloring his drawing of a five tailed fox that took up the entire page. This one he decided would be Akira. He colored in the eyes with a yellow, then used a brown to darken the color a little.

"It's bedtime, Harry." Severus said.

"But I'm not done with these. I want to give them to Sam." Harry lifted the drawing he was currently working on up and showed his father.

"They are very good. You are quite the artist. But it's still bedtime. You can finish them tomorrow. As far as I know, Sam has no plans on leaving any time soon."

Harry set the drawing down on the table and followed his father out of the living room. Severus went to his own bedroom while Harry continued to the bathroom to brush his teeth. Harry walked into his room rubbing his eyes tiredly. He froze at the sight of the normal sized fox sitting on his bed.

 _: I've thought about what I've already told you and I've decided how I want to continue. Jump in bed before I change my mind._

Harry quickly jumped into his bed, crawling under the blankets. He wasn't about to question the fox. He really wanted Sam to follow through and continue his story.

"Are you in bed, Harry?" Severus said, entering the room. "Sam. There you are. Back into story-telling mode?"

Severus sat on the bed next to Harry, putting an arm around his son.

 _: As ready as I'll ever be._ Sam said, tilting his head, allowing his ears to drop a bit, the black tips quivering twice.

Severus opened his mouth, frowned slightly, then decided against whatever it was he was going to say. He nodded once to Sam. "Very well."

Sam audibly sighed through his nose. He closed his eyes for a moment, his tails dragging back and forth slowly on the bed.

 _: If I remember correctly, I was at the part where my den was invaded by arrows and we were running out of the escape tunnels._

"Yeah, did everyone get to the den, safely? I really want to know." Harry interrupted.

"Harry." Severus gave his son a warning look. Harry flushed slightly at his father's scolding, embarrassed at his own impatient behavior.

 _: It's alright. I at least know where to begin._ Sam said. He sighed once more. _The escape tunnels were very narrow and long, allowing all of us a long, distant passage away from the main den. Also, being very narrow and tight fitting, the exit hole was hardly noticeable unless you knew what you were looking for. That is what my sisters' and I had to crawl through . . ._

* * *

Sam took a deep breath, trying to muster up bravery himself, before charging forward. He just fit in the escape tunnel, though his back brushed against the top and his stomach dragged on the bottom. He used his abdominal muscles as much as he used his legs to drag and pull himself forward. His paws were getting sweaty, dirt and tiny stones were getting stuck between his toes. Nonetheless, he pushed forward.

After a good five minutes of crawling, Sam felt his head hit something soft. He nosed his way through the pile of leaves and grass and crawled out of the tunnel. Without bothering to look around, he ran as fast as he could toward the river, leaping over fallen branches and crawling under thickets.

The first two times he had run the route, Akira had run alongside him and told Sam that the best way to make it to the den alive was to stay as hidden as possible when running. After, Mai and Akira tested all the kits ability to run the trek in a reasonable time. One by one, each kit was sent through their exit tunnel and told to run to the den by the river, where Akira was waiting. Mai would bark loudly first, signaling each pup when to begin. Once that kit had reached the den, Akira would bark loudly. Sam could faintly hear when each parent would bark. It was their way of timing the kits.

The only difference between the trial runs and this run was that Akira would not be waiting for them at the den. Mai wouldn't be instructing everyone when to run or how to make the journey shorter. They were all alone. And Sam prayed that they wouldn't be alone for long and that somehow their parents would defeat the hunters and triumphantly run to the den, where he and his sister's would be safely waiting.

Finally, after a three-minute run, Sam saw the river and leaped down a few rocks and ran full speed into a hole in the rocky area. He smiled as he caught his breath. He was the first to arrive, but that was alright, considering he was older and stronger than his sisters. The den wasn't as large as their home, but it would fit four kits comfortably. It was naturally formed by the rocky environment surrounding the river. The only addition that Akira and Mai added was a large pile of grass that had yellowed with age. Sam nosed at the pile, spreading it out a bit. It was still soft enough to lie on, Sam figured, they could always just use each other's fur for warmth, too. Sam stuck his head out of the den, still smiling softly as he waited for his sister's to arrive.

"Come, Sumi. You can do it." Sam whispered to himself. "Rini, I know you can do it. You too, Hoshi."

Sam kept his head out, peering above the rocks and into the trees, looking for any flash of red. He licked his lips anxiously as he withdrew into the den and nosed the pile of grass more, patting it down with his paws. He walked back to the entrance and stuck his head out. He could hear the sounds of gunfire and barking.

"Where are you, sisters?" Sam whispered. He kept staring out into the trees, but there was no movement. Sa felt his heart picking up again and his paws grew sweaty.

A scream joined the sounds of dogs and men firing guns. A horrible sound of a fox in agony.

"No!" Sam ran out of the den, running back towards his home. "No! Rini! Where are you? Hoshi! Hoshiko, answer me! Natsumi!"

Sam sprinted through the trees, the sounds of snarls and men shouting growing louder. He kept calling for his sisters, his heart pounding angrily from the sudden fear that washed over him, sending shivers down his back. He was very close to where the fight was taking place.

Sam halted. He was somewhere between twenty to thirty feet away from his home. He could see dogs through the trees and men aiming their guns and arrows flying through the air. He couldn't risk being seen, he was still too small and unable to create foxfire, nor could he mist, illusion himself invisible or grow in size. However, he needed to find his sisters.

Sam took a single step forward when he heard a whimper. His left ear pivoted to the side. He looked in the direction he heard the sound. He moved to his left, sniffing at the ground. He could vaguely smell a fox and he stopped at a tree that had a hole dug underneath it, possibly from a small rodent. He glanced inside.

"Rini," Sam said softly.

The tiny fox lifted her head and looked at Sam, her eyes misty and full of fear. She was curled up as far back in the hole as she could get herself, her ears flat against her head and her tail tucked close to her body. Sam, though still a kit himself and small, was too big to crawl under the tree like his youngest sister could. Rini didn't move, though she looked slightly relieved to see Sam.

"Rini, it's okay. Why didn't you run to the den?" Sam asked gently.

"I got scared," Rini whispered.

"How long have you been under here?"

"I don't know. I crawled out the escape tunnel like we were supposed to. Then I heard scary noises and I ran under here. They got her. I saw from under here. Those things with the curly tails and big teeth. They got her. They killed her."

"Who, Rini?" Sam asked. Tears were filling his eyes again. One of his sisters was dead. He had already failed his parents. Someone he loved dearly had already been killed.

"Hoshiko," Rini answered. Sam dropped his head, his ears dropping. A couple tears escaped his eyes. Rini kept talking. "I was under here and she was running for the den. A furry monster came out of nowhere and bit her. She screamed; it was so horrible. Okaasan came and killed it by biting its throat and burning it with her tails. I thought she made it in time. But all she did was lick Hoshi and run back to the fight. Hoshi never got back up. I tried to call her but she never answered me." Rini was crying now.

Sam had missed Hoshiko's body, but from Rini's position, the tragic event could have happened anywhere around this tree. He really didn't want to look for his sister's body either. Not now. He had to get Rini to the den where she would be safe and far away from the fight. Rini had been traumatized enough. They could all bury Hoshi's body once the fight was over, Sam decided.

"We can't stay here, Rini. Come out. I'll escort you to the den." Sam encouraged.

"No. I'm too scared. I won't make it to the den." Rini laid her head back down, curling up as tight as she could, appearing even smaller in the hole.

Sam tried to nose his way into the hole, but he could barely get his head through. He had to get to Rini, he had to keep his promise and protect his remaining sisters. After Rini was safe in the den, if Natsumi wasn't there, he would look for her next. Sa wasn't sure how to make Rini come out on her own. He didn't blame her for being terrified after what she had witnessed. Even so, he was just as frightened himself.

There was a rustling of leaves and a snap of a twig behind him. Sam spun around. A large, fluffy dog was sniffing around the bushes and trees, a man following in tow with a long sword.

Sam gasped and quickly moved to hide behind the tree. Instinct told him to run, but he refused to leave Rini. He peeked out from where he hid, watching the hunters. The dog, an Akita, led the man towards a random spot in the forest before sitting and looking up at the man. The man reached down and lifted something red up. Sam gulped as he recognized Hoshi. He didn't see any blood, but he did notice that her head seemed limper than it should be, dead or not. Sam snarled as the man shoved Hoshi into a loose bag like sling he had on his shoulder.

The man gave the dog an order and the dog began sniffing once more. It moved towards Rini's tree, growling slightly.

"No," Sam whispered. "Rini."

Sam moved around the tree, keeping himself out of the hunters' sights. However, as he came around from the side, he quickly back tracked when he saw the dog sniffing the hole at the tree's trunk. He heard Rini yelp and cry out from inside.

 _No, Rini. If you had been quiet, the man would have thought the dog smelled a rat! The hole would look too small for a fox._ Sam thought.

Thinking quickly, Sam decided he had nothing to lose if it meant saving Rini. He bolted away from the tree, running in clear sight of the man and his dog. The dog snapped his head up and chased after Sam, barking, the man not far behind. Sam knew he hadn't thought his plan completely through. He had brought attention to himself, but now he had to lose the man and the dog.

 _My scent._

Sam ran back towards the river. With his flight instinct kicking in, Sam was sure he had never run as fast as he was now. He carefully trotted through the water, remembering how slippery it could be and the time Natsumi had slipped in. Due to his slowing down, the dog nearly jumped on top of him, however, the dog was unfamiliar with the area and slipped on the rocks, tumbling past Sam and sliding into the deeper, raging waters. The dog was strong, though and managed to paddle back towards the shallower area. The man carefully but quickly made his way to the dog, grabbing its scruff.

Sam didn't stay and watch the strange human-animal bond. Instead, he took off back into the trees. He had only hoped to get rid of his scent and disappear into some bushes, but the delay would do just as well. Sam dashed under thickets, trying to hide himself as he made his way back to Rini. He stopped at the tree with the rodent hole, but when he looked inside, Rini was gone.

"Rini!" Sam called. "Rini, where are you?"

Sam whipped his head around, surveying the surrounding area before trying to smell her scent. It was strong under the tree and he managed to follow it out and around the tree. He half trotted, half walked as he followed his sister's scent. As his head was down, something small smacked into him.

"Samuru!" Rini cried as she crawled under him, trying desperately to hide, nearly knocking Sam over.

Sam was relieved that she was alright, but that relief was short-lived. He looked up to see what had scared her and saw the last hunter he wanted to see.

* * *

The grey-eyed man. The one that should have died years ago naturally. The leader of the cluster of hunters. The one that killed his parents.

"So, you must be the oldest kit. You will do nicely in my collection." The dirty blonde haired man said with an evil smirk.

Sam lowered himself a bit, covering Rini with his body. He snarled at the man.

"Tsk-tsk, now none of that." The man dropped his blades to the ground in a truce manner. 'If you come to me without a fuss, I may let your little sibling live."

Out of the corner of his eyes, Sam noticed that the man and his now wet Akita dog had returned and were blocking the path to the river. The man with the dog lowered his sword toward Sam, giving his dog the command to stay. The dog growled but did not move.

"Come here, little fox. Bring your sibling and I will see to it that you both live." The man continued.

Sam had no idea what to do. Rini shook like a leaf beneath him. She laid flat on the ground, her ears still flat on her head. Sam kept himself over her. He eyed both men and the dog, debating what he could possibly do next. The fight in the clearing seemed to have died down, though Sam could hear dogs barking. Sam wondered if his parents had illusioned themselves invisible or misted, refusing to think of any other possibilities.

Suddenly, a large ball of fire stuck the dog in the face. The dog yelped as it fell to the ground, its owner dropping to his knees and cradling the dog's scorched, blown up face.

Sam watched as a fox-shaped mist flew in between him and the grey-eyed man. Akira solidified in the size of a large wolf, facing the fair-haired hunter, snarling. The hunter looked unimpressed. The man with the dog glared at the fox as he rose to his feet, preparing his sword.

"I remember you." Sam heard the blonde say.

 _: You should be dead_. Akira snapped. _How are you still alive?_

"It's hard to die when you're not quite human, don't you think." The man responded, smirking.

Akira's growl deepened.

"Sam, take Rini and get to the den. Go! Now!" Akira barked. Akira opened his mouth and released a jet of flames. Using the fire as a cover-up, Sam pushed his sister to get her moving and the two ran as Akira fought with the hunters.

Dogs barked at the excitement of flames and the scent of a fox. Sam hoped they focused on Akira instead of them. Sam had to slow his run a bit so Rini could stay at his side. They ran a good few yards away from the ensuing fight. Rini ran close to his side, breathing heavily.

It had happened so quickly Sam wasn't quite sure what had happened. One moment Rini was by his side and the next she was lifted high into the air. She screamed as she hung from a tree, a rope tied around her back left leg.

"Rini!" Sam yelled as he tried to hope up on his back legs to reach her. It was a trap! Rini had stepped right into it.

"Sa, help me! Get me down!" Rini cried. She wriggled as she tried to loosen the rope on her leg. She tried to bite at it but found that she couldn't ben far enough.

The tree the trap had been set up in was a tall, wide one with no close enough branches for Sam to hop on so he could help her. Sam tried to dig his claws into the tree and climb up the way rodents would. However, it hurt his claws and he had to push himself back down to the ground. Sam tried again, willing to ignore the pain to reach his sister. He couldn't grip the bark, he couldn't pull himself up the tree and he pushed himself to the ground below. He tried hoping again, hoping to snag Rini and help pull her down.

Rini continued to try and loosen the rope by squirming and trying to bite it. She couldn't reach the rope on her leg. She didn't have the abdominal strength to bend in such a way for a long period in order to chew through the rope.

Sam could hear barking dogs coming closer in their direction. He kept hoping around the tree, trying to reach Rini. He felt helpless, worthless, because he couldn't save his sister from this trap. He couldn't reach her. Tears welled in his eyes again, and Sam felt a heavy pressure in his chest as fear began to send shivers down his back.

And then it was over just as quickly as it had started. An arrow flew straight into Rini's abdomen, pinning her to the tree. Rini gasped at the sudden pain, her eyes widening and her ears thrusting forward.

Sam watched shocked as Rini jerked when another arrow struck her in the ribs, her body completely glued to the tree. The light slowly faded from her eyes as the little kit puffed out her last breath.

"No." Sam felt his hot tears fall freely from his eyes, dampening the fur around them. "No, Rini!"

Sam backed away from the lifeless eyes that continued to stare at him, reminding him that he had failed his parents yet again. That he had lost his youngest sister, the little girl that followed him everywhere and tried her best to please him. He had let her down. He had gotten her killed. His eyes burned from the falling tears.

Sam looked up in time to see two dogs and three men running in his direction. He glanced at Rini one final time.

"I'm sorry." He said before taking off as the dogs passed the tree after him.

Sam had to get back to the den. He would have to disappear from sight and allow his parents to continue their fight. Sam ran as fast as he could, hoping he could somehow lose the dogs that were leading the men. As Sam turned around a tree, he felt something whip by him.

Pausing, Sam realized it was another trap. He had nearly been snagged. He looked back at the tree that had hung Rini and realized that there was an odd pattern with the traps. He quickly made a change of direction, running back towards the fight and then straight. The dogs were at his heels.

 _Please be the tree. Please be the tree._ Sam prayed in his mind. He jumped up on the trunk and launched himself off. The dog closest to him ran up closer to the tree and opened its mouth to bite him as he had pushed off the trunk. However, the dog had gotten close enough to the tree and was lifted into the air, yelping and whining.

Sam smirked as his plan had worked. He looked for the next tree that would follow the pattern he was figuring out. He ran closer to where he could hear gunfire and slashes of blades where he knew his parents were fighting the majority of the hunters. As long as he stayed clear of the middle of it, he would be fine. He continued to lead the remaining dog and three men.

As he passed the tree he hoped would have the trap, he heard a yelp and whimper to his right and a surprised shout to his left. He glanced behind him to see a man and a dog hanging from a tree. One of the two standing men stopped to help his friend, waving at the other man to keep going.

"Two in one! Ha!" Sam praised himself. "What an idiot." He laughed.

Sam decided to head for the den before stopping himself. Natsumi! She must be in the den. He couldn't lead the man to her. Sam stopped dead in his tracks and turned to face the man, snarling.

The man smirked as he set his bow on the ground and pulled out a knife.

Sam started making half bark, half howl noises at the man, his fur puffing out and his teeth flashing angrily. The man did not seem threatened. His smirk simply grew as he took a couple steps forward. Sam paused, then tried snarling again. For some reason, the man gasped and scrambled back to grab his bow.

Sam stopped snarling and lifted his head. Did he really frighten the man? The sound of a continued snarl made Sam turn around.

Mai stood behind him, snarling at the man, her fur puffed out as she held herself up to her full height. Sam had never seen his gentle, sweet mother look so frightening. Mai was bleeding around her neck and all down her back, but she was otherwise ignoring the wounds.

Sam looked back at the man who was fitting an arrow on his bow. Sam quickly backed up underneath his wolf-sized mother, hiding slightly behind her leg as he peered at the man now aiming at Mai.

Mai gave a single bark and the bow the man was holding flew out of his hands and up into the trees, getting tangled in branches. The man stared up at his weapon before grabbing his knife and eyeing Mai warily. Mai gave another bark and the knife dug itself into a nearby tree. Startled, the man had at first let the knife go when he felt it move. Now unarmed, the man tried to pull the knife out of the tree, but the blade had embedded itself completely within the bark, lodging itself inside. Mai snarled once more.

Sam nuzzled his head against Mai's leg, silently thanking her for her rescue before he took off through the trees. He heard the man scream and knew that Mai had lunged at him. Sam ran back to the den by the river. He breathed heavy as he entered the dark den. The sun was beginning to set now. Leaving an orange colored sky.

"Natsumi?" Sam called. "Are you in here?"

There was no response.

"Sumi." Sam tried again. "Are you scared? It's okay. Please answer me."

The den was empty. Sam refused to believe it, though. Natsumi was hiding somewhere, it just wasn't in the den. Sam laid down on the grass, trying to ignore the sounds of gunfire and snarls.

The noise was increasing. Howling, growling, gunfire, men shouting. Sam flattened his ears, tears falling from his eyes. More gunfire, more growls and another howl.

And finally, a scream.

A dying fox's scream.

"No." Sam shot his head up. He stood to his feet and leaped to the entrance. He looked out and surveyed the trees. The sky was growing darker as the sun slowly disappeared behind the mountains. The noises died down. The forest was silent. "No." Sam said again.

Sam listened to the dead silence for another moment.

"Otousan!"

Sam gasped as he recognized Natsumi's voice. He jumped out of the den and hurried for the trees once again.

"Otousan!" Natsumi's voice came again. "Okaasan!"

Sam sprinted over a fallen log as he rushed through the dark forest. He followed the frightened call of his sister's.

"Okaasan!" She sounded more desperate. More afraid. "Otousan!"

Sam tripped over a log he had attempted to jump over. He fell to the ground and rolled a bit before he got back to his feet. He shook himself out and kept running.

"Samuru!" Natsumi screamed.

"Natsumi!" Sam screamed back. "I'm coming!"

Sam kept running in the direction he had heard Natsumi. The forest was completely dark and he hardly recognized the trees anymore. Sam never stopped. The voice no longer came, no calls for help from his sister. Tears blinded his vision as he bounded forward.

"I'm coming. I'm coming." Sam cried.

It was an endless straight shot forward. Sam would have run all night if he had too, if he could. He had been running all day however, since he had played tag with Hoshi and Rini this morning. Since his hunting lesson before lunch. Since he had wrestled with Natsumi after lunch and taken off with her. Running back to warn his parents of the hunters. The first run to the den. The search for his sisters. Saving Rini. Losing Rini. Escaping the hunters and dogs. The second run to the den. And now chasing after Natsumi.

Sam felt something within him break. He collapsed to the ground from exhaustion, both physically and emotionally. His chest hurt, his legs hurt, his head hurt, and most importantly, his heart hurt.

"Natsumi." Sam cried as he shakily stood to his feet. He didn't continue forward. He wouldn't be able to endure much more. He stared out into the darkness of the never-ending trees, tears still falling. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. This is all my fault. I'm sorry."

* * *

Sam walked slowly back to the main den. The forest had been completely silent for a while now. Sam wanted to know what remained of his home after the raid. He entered the clearing where the hut like structure once stood as the entrance to the steep hole in the ground. He looked at the torn up, burnt remains of the grass, leaves, and branches that the hut had been composed of. The large hole in the ground was now only partially covered by the collapsed devastation.

Sam sniffled as he stared at it and debated sliding down inside where he could crawl into his parents' den and be able to smell their scent one final time. But his father had scorched the ceiling of the den, that smoke was sure to have spread, covering any scent that may have remained. Still sniffling, Sam turned away from the place he once called home, his tail dragging and his ears flat, the black tips quivering.

Sam wondered what he would do now, where he would go. He wanted his parents to be near him now. He already missed them. He wanted his sisters, to protect them and care for them as he promised his parents he would do. He let out a strangled cry, trying hard to keep quiet in case any hunters remained.

Sam walked towards the trees. He lifted his head and froze at the sight that greeted him.

Mai lay on her side on the far right of the clearing, a good distance away from the trees. There were gashes in her neck, bite wounds on her face and long, deep lesions down her back. Two of her five tails had been chopped off at an odd angle. However, what Sam believed killed her, was the stab wound in her ribs. It was obvious that Mai had stopped bleeding a time ago.

"Okaasan!" Sam trotted forward and nuzzled the still wolf-sized fox. He gently rubbed her cheek against his. "Okaasan, wake up. Everyone's gone now. The hunters, they've left. Open your eyes."

Sam looked down at Mai, expecting her eyes to flutter open and a smile to appear on her face. She always smiled. Sam waited expectantly, though somewhere deep inside him was heartbreakingly accepting the truth.

"Okaasan, please." Sam tried one last time. He lowered his head, his ears dropping and his tail curling around him.

"I tried to save them, Okaasan." Sam confessed. "I really did. But I couldn't. I let them die. I'm so sorry. I failed you. I failed Okaasan. I failed Rini. Rini, I had her; she was with me. She was running with me. It should have been me on that rope. I could have gotten down. I failed Rini. And Hoshi. And Sumi. And Otousan. I failed Otousan. I broke my promise."

Sam fell forward, his head burying deep into Mai's neck fur. Sam cried softly for a minute before jumping to his feet and running towards the trees where he had chased after Natsumi's voice, stopping just short of entering them.

"Come back, you cowards!" Sam howled. "Come back and fight me! Take me, too. Take my life, too." Sam sniffled again and crawled back to Mai, curling up next to her chest.

He heard a strange caw like noise and he lifted his head, looking over Mai's shoulder. He saw a crow land next to Mai's head. Two more landed close to the first. The first crow took a step forward and pecked at Mai.

Sam snarled and bolted forward, barking and snarling at the birds. The crows were hesitant to leave and seemed to size the small fox up, giving him a sidelong look. Deciding against whatever they were thinking, the birds flew away from the yapping fox kit. Sam ran back to his mother, curling up next to her chest, snuggling as close as he could, though her body was losing its warmth and there was no longer a steady heartbeat to listen to.

For the rest of the night, Sam chased away birds and scavenger predators of different kinds away from Mai. Some animals were bigger than Sam but still decided to leave the protective kit with the dead mother, figuring that, eventually, the kit would perish as well.

Sam hardly slept. He managed to doze a bit, but never did he fall into a deep sleep. He focused on keeping everything away from his mother if it was the last thing he did. Morning slowly came and the foggy sky lit up the forest slightly. Sam shivered in his dozed off state but didn't move.

He felt Mai being moving slightly, signaling that something was touching his mother, Sam lifted his head and rested it on Mai's shoulder, prepared to snarl at whatever may be near her. He froze in shock.

Akira was gently nuzzling Mai's head, similar to how Sam had done so that night. The large wolf-sized fox had his eyes closed tightly. Sam noticed that Akira had fewer wounds than Mai did, a bite wound on his shoulder, and a couple puncture wounds from possible arrows or even the tip of blades. However, there appeared to be a bullet wound in Akira's lower side that was no longer bleeding, but it was deep and looked painful. Sam wondered how the fox was still standing.

Akira sighed through his nose and opened his eyes and the two foxes made eye contact. Akira's eyes grew with disbelief as he stared at the small kit nestled close to Mai. Then, Akira leaned forward and nuzzled Sam, who willingly nuzzled Akira in return.

"Samuru," Akira whispered. "You're alive."

Sam said nothing. Only hours ago, he had wished to die alongside his family. Now, he just wanted whatever comfort he could get.

* * *

Sam drew in a deep breath and looked at Harry. He winced as he saw the small boy in tears, his arms wrapped around Severus. The older man was a master of poker faces, Sam thought, but there was deep emotion within those black eyes.

 _: I'm sorry. I should have stopped. You were too young for this._ Sam apologized.

"No, I'm okay," Harry said, wiping at his tears. "It was really sad, though. You lost everyone in one night. All your sisters and mom. That's horrible. Except Akira. How did he survive? Is he going to be alright? What about you?" Harry asked.

 _: No more, Harry. Not tonight._ Sam said. _I've told all I can. For now. Goodnight, young human._

Sam jumped down from the bed. He heard Harry wish him goodnight as he left the room. He crawled over to his plush bed and collapsed on it. It was the scariest and hardest night Sam had survived in either world. Nothing Sam ever experienced had ever compared to what had happened that night. He relived it in his nightmares. He fought to deal with the trauma he still suffered from it. However, Akira had helped him through it while the five-tailed fox could.

Speaking of Akira, Sam lifted his head as he saw a drawing of what looked like two ordinary foxes. Sam crawled off his bed as he crept forward, eyeing the drawing that laid on the floor near the coffee table. The drawing was Harry's, the foxes were a bit cartoonish and it was colored in with a deep red instead of a fox red.

Even so, one of the foxes had a typical white chest among the red fur, while the other one had a star on its chest. The two foxes sat side by side, their heads tilted toward each other, their tails lifted up to the side. The two foxes were labeled 'Sam' and 'Sumee.'

Sam tilted his head to the side. There was another drawing on the floor, this one of all six foxes in his family. Mai was lying down with five tails sticking up behind her, Akira was sitting behind her with his five tails up behind him. Four smaller foxes surrounded them. They were placed in a grass field and everyone was smiling, though Harry had spelled Mai as 'My,' Rini as 'Reenee,' and Natsumi as 'Sumee' once again. Hoshi was surprisingly correct.

Another drawing on the ground showed just the four kits, Sam and 'Sumee' in downward dogs as if prepared to wrestle. Hoshi was sitting off to the side watching and Rini, the smallest fox in the drawing, was off to the side and standing on her hind legs, ready to join the game.

There were several drawing all around the floor, and Sam glanced around at them amazed. One final drawing caught his attention, the one that sat on the coffee table.

Akira.

It was probably the best drawing the boy had done of the foxes. Akira was sitting naturally. And the smile resembled a smirk more than anything else, and Akira was always smirking and telling jokes, carelessly fooling around yet still able to be the adult when it was needed. His eyes were spot on, the blend of the yellow and brown created the perfect fox eye color. Akira had two tails wrapped around him and three held up behind him, a common posture he took as it was most comfortable. The black paws, white chest, upright ears, and again the sly smirk. Even the name was correctly spelled and written in Harry's careful script.

Sam felt a burn in his eyes and blinked rapidly, surprised to find tears dampening the fur around them.

He heard someone clear their throat and looked up to see Severus watching him. Sam sighed.

 _: I hope I didn't frighten him with my story._

"Harry is alright. I spoke to him about tragic events and how they are out of our control." Severus watched as Sam sighed and looked back down at the drawing. "Harry drew them specifically for you. All of them."

Sam looked around the floor and back at the drawing on the coffee table.

 _: They are amazing. Well detailed._ Sam commented. _I suppose he wants to be able to give them to me._

"Yes, he would like to. Don't worry, I think he's almost done with them."

 _: I'm not worrying. I can wait._ Sam said.

"Well, I should finish grading my essays. Goodnight, Sam."

 _: Goodnight, Severus._ Sam said, staring down at the drawing of Akira.

Severus turned around and took a step for his study. He heard the familiar sound of Sam misting and then the sound of crinkling paper. Severus spun around.

The living room was quiet, Harry's drawings still scattered around the floor. However, Severus smiled as he noticed the drawing missing from the coffee table.

* * *

I hope it wasn't too downhearted. Tell me what you loved and hated about Sam's long day and night.


	5. Akira's Words of Wisdom

Here's the next chapter!

* * *

Harry waved goodbye to his Uncle Remus as he stepped inside his quarters. His father had asked Remus to have dinner with Harry and return him to his quarters since Severus had two detentions to monitor. When he walked inside, Sam was sitting on his dog bed waiting for him.

"Hi Sam." Harry greeted happily.

 _: Hello Harry._ Sam returned. _Your father asked me to make sure you get ready for bed, brush your teeth, and take your potion._

Harry made a face at the mention of the potion. Harry had managed to come down with strep throat and needed to take an antibiotic potion for five days. This would be his last day at least.

Harry changed in to his pajamas in his room and then went out into the kitchen to take the potion. He glared at the vial. He preferred to take the potion before he brushed his teeth. It was a horrible potion. It reminded Harry of dirt.

 _: You could have already taken it by now._ Sam commented.

Harry looked at the fox sitting on the corner, his normal fox size.

"It's horrible. I bet you didn't have to drink potions to get better when you were sick."

 _: No. I either had to wait it out or my mother would find sap or some kind of grass or leaves. Depending on what I had. Sometimes she'd bring back bugs. I could always head out and catch you a slimy worm if you'd like._

"Eww! No!" Harry said, making a disgusted face.

 _: Then I suggest you drink your potion before I treat you like a baby bird._ Sam gave a wide foxy smile, his white teeth showing.

Harry grumbled under his breath but quickly drank down the contents of the vial. Harry ran to the bathroom and scrubbed his teeth with extra minty toothpaste. Sam, still in the kitchen, stared at a cup by the sink and using his mind, he made the glass rise and stop under the faucet of the sink. The sink turned on and filled the glass with water before turning off. The glass was set back down on the counter.

Harry came back from the bathroom, still sputtering.

"I forgot to brush my tongue." Harry complained to Sam.

 _: No one's stopping you from brushing your teeth again. However, if you prefer, there's a glass of water._ Sam looked at the glass he had filled for Harry.

Harry ran to the glass and chugged down the water. He set the glass down heavily and took a deep breath for air.

"Thanks." Harry said.

 _: Your welcome. It's bedtime, I believe._

"Can you tell me more of your story tonight. You haven't told anything in a while. Like a week."

 _: I needed a break from that. I had a lot to think about. Such as how much I miss my family._ Sam said, his tone lightly scolding.

"Sorry." Harry whispered, fiddling with the cup in between his hands.

 _: It's fine. You meant no harm. And your drawings did help._ Sam offered a small curl of his black lips.

"You stole my drawing of Akira." Harry accused with a smile.

 _: I did. And it's still my favorite._ Sam jumped down from the counter and walked towards Harry's room. _Come, into bed with you and I shall tell you what happened after the attack._

Harry smiled and followed the fox to his room. He jumped into bed and grabbed his stuffed tiger, Whisker. Sam jumped into his usual place at the end of Harry's bed.

 _: I won't make this as long since it is pretty late. I believe I ended with Akira's return, so I shall start there. Akira was relieved to see me alive, one of his kits, after believing that he had lost everyone in his family . . ._

* * *

The large wolf-sized Akira gently groomed Sam's fur, running his tongue along Sam's cheeks and down the kit's back. Sam held still, allowing Akira to continue his grooming. He had yet to leave Mai's side and Akira had to stand over Mai's body to reach him.

"Are you hurt anywhere? They never got to you, did they? Stand up, let me see you." Akira nudged Sam in the side.

Sam stood and took a couple shaky steps away from Mai. His legs ached and his muscles shook painfully from yesterday's events and the restless night Sam had suffered through. Akira sniffed Sam, nosing his way down Sam's back and along his underbelly. Sam nearly fell over from the touch, unable to withstand the slightest pressure. Satisfied, Akira gave Sam a critical look and sighed.

"You are exhausted, my son," Akira said. "Come. We'll rest in the den. Out of sight."

Sam took a few more wobbly steps away from Mai. He didn't want to be in the den after what had happened. He didn't want to leave Mai's side. However, being out in the open was far too dangerous for kitsune. As Sam slowly moved past Akira, he looked up at his father opened his mouth and began to breathe a steady flame over Mai.

"No! What are you doing!" Sam cried. He felt a bit of strength return to him and he hopped on his hind legs and nipped Akira's chin. "Stop!"

Akira pulled his head away and from the sharp pain and ceased his fire. Sam ran back to Mai and pawed at a couple spots of burning fur, putting out the flames. Mai's face was now scorched, but Sam stood on Mai's shoulder with his front paws and snarled at Akira.

"Leave Okaasan alone!" Sam growled. Akira sighed.

"Sa, she's just going to attract predators. We can't just leave her out here to rot. What disgrace." Akira reasoned.

"No! You can't burn Okaasan to nothing. I won't let you." Tears welled in Sam's eyes as he laid protectively over his mother's body. He knew that at his size it would take little for Akira to physically remove him off Mai, but if the larger fox did so, Sam was prepared to throw the tantrum of his life.

Akira sighed once more, allowing his head to drop and his eyes to close, his ears dropping to the sides. Sam watched his father closely.

"I'm sorry, Samuru," Akira said, his head still lowered. "But Mai . . . Okaasan . . . is dead. And before she is disgracefully eaten by something, her body needs to be taken care of."

It was too bluntly said in Sam's opinion. Tears welled in his eyes.

"No!" Sam whispered. He nuzzled up against his mother's neck. "I want Okaasan. Okaasan daisuki. Come back."

Sam could hear Akira's breath deepen. He looked at the blurry image of Akira through his tears. Akira leaned forward and gently ran his tongue along an unscathed patch of fur on Mai's cheek. Sam knew his father hurt as much as he did, and he also knew that he wasn't making the loss much easier for the fox. Crawling off Mai, Sam walked up to his father and leaned against him, nuzzling into his father's arm. Akira lowered his head and rested his chin on Sam's head. They remained that way for a few silent moments.

"Can we bury Okaasan?" Sam finally asked.

"We may," Akira answered. "But she will still have to be burned, Sa. At least to ash and bone so nothing sniffs her out and digs her up."

"Okay." Sam agreed.

For the next hour, Sam helped his father dig a large and deep enough hole for Mai to be lowered into. The hole was dug out ten feet behind where the main den was. Sam watched as Akira merely stared at Mai and her body slowly lifted off the ground and traveled to the hole before slowly lowering into it. Then Akira breathed a steady flow of fire on her body while Sam cried softly, watching his mother's beautiful fur turn to ash. Then he aided Akira in burying Mai. Once they were finished, Akira waved his tails above the burial and a large headstone appeared.

Akira rubbed up against the tombstone. The name 'Ishimori Mai' appeared. Sam watched as Akira circled the stone, keeping his body up against it. On the side, 'Ishimori Rini' appeared. On the back, 'Ishimori Natsumi,' and on the other side, 'Ishimori Hoshiko.' Sam lowered his head once more. Akira returned to the front and sat next to Sam, resting his forehead against the stone. Sam copied his stance.

Finally, as the two foxes walked towards the den, Sam yelped as his legs collapsed under him. He had reached his physical limits. He was exhausted. Akira lifted his son by his back since Sam was too big to scruff and carried him inside the den. The two foxes slept side by side for the rest of the day.

The next day, Akira had shrunk down to the size of a normal fox. Akira's wounds, the bite wound on his shoulder and the two puncture wounds in his back did not seem to heal. Akira told Sam that the bullets had been laced with poison, and the gunshot wound in Akira's side was to blame for the slow growth.

For a week, Akira would slowly make his way down to the river with Sam in tow and together they would fish. Akira gave Sam more pointers on the quickest way to snap a fish's spine and constantly reminded Sam of the best times of day, night and seasons to fish. Later into the evening and through the night, Akira worked with Sam on his hunting and while Sam had yet to catch anything, Akira believed they were making progress. Before the early dawn, Akira would catch a rabbit for them both. And by early morning, Akira and Sam would return to the den and rest.

Akira also showed the little fox how to make a bed from freshly pulled grass and leaves, as well as how to fix up the dens, what size he would need to be to dig out the escape tunnels (for when he could change size), although Akira himself never demonstrated by changing his own size, and so on. Sam had also started coughing up sparks, something Akira was very proud of.

It started three days after the attack, the two foxes were sleeping in the den and Sam had a coughing fit and sparks flew from his mouth. He smelled a horrible gas like aura on his breath. Akira awoke and pawed Sam's back helpfully, encouraging his son to breath.

"Soon," Akira said, "You'll be breathing fire. And at a young age, too."

"Yes." Sam proudly lifted his head up. "Then I can protect myself even better. You'll show me how to use my fire, right?"

"We'll see, son," Akira said, tilting his head to the side. "I've been thinking. Why didn't you run to the den? The one by the river?"

"I did, Otousan." Sam insisted. "But no one else came. Then I heard a scream."

"Hoshiko."

"How did you know?"

"Mai told me telepathically amid the fight."

"Oh." Sam lowered his head. "Rini would have made it. I know she would have. She had a clear shot straight to the den. But the noise scared her and she hid. She saw Hoshi die. But she would have made it. And then she was with me, but a trap caught her. I couldn't save her. It's all my fault she's gone."

"Samuru," Akira gave Sam a concerned look, but Sam continued.

"Is she still hanging in that tree? We have to get her!" Sam jumped to his feet.

"She isn't, Sa. I was up all night looking for you and your sisters. Or at least what remained. The hunters must have taken the bodies.

Sam sat back down, his tail curling around him, the white tip flicking. He remembered the hunter that had shoved Hoshi into a bag. Disgrace.

"Did you hear Natsumi?" Sam asked after a moment of silence.

"I did. I tried to follow in mist, but the hunters had horses and I was already weak from the fight. Her screams were suddenly cut off, so I can only fear the worst for her."

"I tried to follow, too," Sam said. "I'm sorry, Otousan. I failed at keeping my sisters safe. I broke my promise and let everyone die." Tears fell freely from Sam's eyes.

"No, Samuru," Akira pulled Sam into his side with his chin. He gave Sam a gentle lick on top of the kit's head. "You did all you could. More than I expected. You left the safety of the den to search for your sisters and potentially save them. That takes true courage, Sa. The hunters overpowered us all. There was nothing more you could have done to protect your sisters."

"But . . . I could have . . ." Sam started to argue.

"No." Akira growled sternly. "Whatever you are thinking, no. The hunters are at fault here, Samuru. Specifically that demon."

"The grey-eyed one?"

"Yes." Akira confirmed, nodding his head once.

"I can't take any blame?" Sam looked up at his father. "I still failed you and Okaasan."

Akira sighed and closed his eyes in thought for a long moment.

"How about this?" Akira nudged Sam's shoulder to get his attention. "Starting right now, I want you to say the words 'My family's demise was not my fault.' Say it with me."

"My family's demise was not my fault." Akira and Samuru chanted.

"You will say those words a couple times every day. It can be before you go to bed or when you wake up. But you will say them every day. What happened to us was not your fault, Samuru. And it never will be. You are just as innocent as your sisters were. I never want to hear you blaming yourself again." Akira said softly.

"Yes, Otousan. My family's demise was not my fault." Sam said again. "When do I stop saying the words?"

"When you believe what you are saying is true." Akira answered.

* * *

A second week came by and Akira sent Sam off on his own, expecting Sam to return with fish that they could both eat. Sam tried his best to impress his father by bringing home at least five fish, having to make a couple trips to bring them home. Akira was always amused, though he never seemed to eat more than one fish.

Akira continued to take Sam out in the evening, working with him on his hunting. However, Sam noticed that Akira did not try and hunt a rabbit before dawn, but he thought nothing of it. Fish could be very filling and rabbits could be a challenge to catch. Besides, Akira began teaching Sam about various plants, which were poisonous and which were edible and safe. Mai had had many lessons like Akira's, so it was mostly review for Sam, but he enjoyed learning from his father. By the time it was dawn, Sam would say his required sentences before falling asleep next to Akira.

During that same week, Sam thought back to what the grey-eyed demon man had said about kitsune illusions. He and Akira were chomping on fish for breakfast, though Akira seemed to nibble more than bite.

"Otousan. What are kitsune illusions?" Sam at one time knew the answer, but it had faded with time.

"To create an illusion is the most powerful ability a kitsune possesses. It is where you create an entire world in someone's head, usually in their sleep, but stronger kitsune can do it on a conscious person and knock him into a dream like state. However, if you do it in a person's sleep, it's harder for your victim to know that a kitsune is attacking them." Akira answered.

"How do you create an illusion?"

"It's very hard." Akira tilted his head in thought, his black tipped ears pivoting sideways. "You must get into someone's mind through eye to eye contact and tell their brain to sleep. While some humans can fight it, the deeper their coma-like state is, the easier it will be for you. Then you play with their memories, see what they desire and who they are familiar with before taking control of their dreams. You create a world within their head, let them see what they want to see. What they wish to see. And you can keep them in that illusion until you die, kill the victim, or release the victim. Most kitsune only create illusions for a short time before killing the victim."

"Why kill them? Doesn't showing the victim their desire make them happy?"

"In most cases, yes, it does make your victim happy. It's like a sick cat and mouse game. You let them live in a world of bliss and then you kill them. And it's usually a slow and painful death for the kitsune who pleasure such torture. For the friendlier kitsune, it's a swift death, but they are also the kitsune who avoid creating illusions in the first place."

"But does he have to die?"

"It's only merciful, Sa. Illusions of a kitsune are powerful and overwhelming. Victims will lose all sense of reality, regardless of how hard they fight the illusion. If you've played with their memories enough, their past and who they are, you can break anyone by taking all of it away or slowly torchering them with mistakes of their pasts or even theri own nightmares. And to release them and let them go would send them into insanity. Even the smallest amount of euphoria or even depression yu offer your victim can damage upon release. And that psychological damage is far too torturous to just allow your victim to go."

"Then what is the purpose of creating illusions if it causes so much pain?"

"It used to be used as a hunting tactic for large prey that fight too much. Now, kitsune either hunt with families or in teams. Nowadays, it's generally used on . . ."

"Hunters," Sam said as he coughed up a couple sparks. "Because they'll be easier to kill under an illusion."

"Exactly. And even a hunter can be broken. It can also be used for, and I hate to say this, fun. Some kitsune love the power they feel and the wonderful thrill of the kill in the end. Even worse, some love to damage and release."

"That's horrible!" Sam exclaimed, his ears falling flat on his head. "Can it be used on other kitsune?"

"Yes, but it's uncommon. And plain cruel. Besides, most kitsune can stop it before it starts as we are able to recognize another kitsune's presence in our minds. And whether or not that presence is good or bad."

"Have you ever created an illusion, Otousan?"

"Yes, three times. You saw me perform one on that hunter before the attack. When I was in my three hundreds, I used an illusion on a hunter that was tracking me. It was my first time and I was energy drained for a year. It takes a powerful kitsune to be unaffected by the energy draining an illusion causes. Perhaps a son of Ninetails." Akira smiled down at Sam.

Sam smiled back at his father, before frowning. "What about the third time?"

"It was the second time I had used an illusion and it was merciless of me." Akira sighed, his smile fading. I was almost four hundred and I was bored and growing a bit careless. I had yet to find a mate in all those years. A young human boy, not a child but not yet a man; he came down to the river where I was lying in the reeds. It was impulsive. I used an illusion on him out of complete boredom, and after I grew bored with it, perhaps an hour later, I withdrew. But I couldn't bring myself to kill him. He was still more child than adult, and his eyes were full of childish fear."

"You let him go." Sam concluded.

"I did. He lived in insanity for years before he killed himself." Akira sighed and let his head fall, eyes closing. "Don't ever do what I did, Sa. It was wrong, immoral. I still regret it."

"I won't, Otousan." Sam said. He smiled softy at his father. "Everyone makes mistakes. And that's okay. I'll always forgive you." Sam nuzzled up against Akira's side.

"Thank you, son." Akira smiled back.

By the third week, Akira no longer joined Sam on his hunting practice. Akira had told Sam that there was nothing else to teach on it and that he expected Sam to catch something soon. Sam was sick of eating fish, so he wanted to impress Akira with a plump rabbit they could both enjoy.

Sam stayed low in the grass, waiting patiently as he stared a purple flower, a favorite among the furry grey rodents. He steadied himself on the soft earth, listening to the natural rustle of the grass as the wind blew. He kept still and quiet as he enjoyed the sounds of nature, birds chirping, bees humming, and . . . the sound of a rabbit approaching.

Sam remained collected and quiet as he watched the greyish black rabbit hop over to the purple flower and take a large bite out of it. The rabbit closed its eyes as it contentedly ate the blossom. Sam leaped out of the grass and bit down on the startled rabbit's neck, snapping it instantly. Sam stared down at the fluffy dead cottontail.

"I did it!" Sam said to himself. His smile grew and Sam hopped around enthusiastically. "I did it! I did it!"

In his excitement, Sam felt something hot grow in the back of his throat and something flicking on the roof of his mouth. He stopped prancing as a strange gas like substance grew in his mouth. He nearly gagged as he felt his airway suddenly shut on him. He opened his mouth as he felt the strange flicking on the roof of his mouth again. Flames erupted from his mouth, burning the patch of dry grass beneath him. His airway opened and he gasped for air. Sam stared at the flames licking the ground before he stomped on them to put them out.

Sam swallowed as he forced his airway to close again as he constricted his abdomen and felt the gassy substance fill the back of the throat, the flicking feeling returned on the roof of his mouth and he breathed another flame experimentally into the air. Sam smiled. He had gotten his foxfire. At least the breathable kind. He looked at his tail, but he did not feel the urge for the white tip to catch fire. Sam released a couple more practice jets. The flames were nothing like his father's or Mai's, the jet length barely reached two feet, but it was enough to cook food and even protect himself.

Sam grabbed the rabbit and ran back to the den. Akira was lying under the shade of a nearby tree as he often did lately and looked up as his excited kit approached him with a rabbit. Sam dropped the rabbit at Akira's feet and took a step back.

"I did it, Otousan! I caught a rabbit." Sam said.

"Well done, my son." Akira reached out and nuzzled Sam's cheek. "You're going to be just fine."

Akira returned to his previous position, resting his head on his crisscrossed paws. Sam gave Akira a curious look.

"Aren't you hungry, Otousan? We've had nothing but fish for forever. Oh, right!" Sam remembered what he had to do and what better way to show off his new skill. Sam moved the rabbit away from Akira a bit and breathed a very short jet of flames, though it still engulfed the rabbit. Akira's head shot up as he watched Sam. Sam proudly picked up the now cooked meat and placed it back near Akira.

"There." Sam said, sitting down, curling his tail around him.

Akira smiled before lowering his head back down on his paws, his eyes closing.

"Otousan, here." Sam moved the rabbit closer to Akira's head.

Akira opened his eyes, stared at the rabbit briefly, then moved his head away, resting it on the soft grass, leaning his cheek into his paws.

Confused and growing suddenly concerned, Sam tore a leg off the rabbit, hoping to initiate some aura that would entice his father to eat. He put the leg down in front of Akira's nose.

"You have to eat." Sam pleaded. Akira's eyes remained closed. "Here. I caught it for you. There's more meat here than there is on fish. Don't you want any? Please eat."

Sam picked up the leg and moved it toward Akira's face, gently poking at his father to get his attention. Akira lifted his head and turned it away from Sam, his upper lips lifting in warning.

"Eat the damn rabbit, Otousan!" Sam barked angrily, the leg falling to the ground as he snarled at Akira.

Suddenly, Akira stood to his feet and forced Sam to the ground, holding him down with a single paw as he snarled at Sam, his white teeth inches from the kit's face. Sam's ears had fallen flat against his head, and his eyes squinted nervously as he waited for Akira to nip him, whimpering slightly. Akira did not nip him, however.

"Enough." The larger fox growled. He removed his paw and walked away from Sam, lying down under the shade of another tree away from Sam.

For the first time in the three weeks, Sam suddenly became aware of his father's thinning body and weak appearance. Sam thought of his father's loss of appetite, his constant sleeping, his lack of interest in hunting, fishing, and even moving about. Sam realized why his father was so concerned about teaching him to hunt, to fish, to make a bed, to survive. Akira knew he was dying and he wanted Sam to be ready for when he was no longer around. The bullet wound in his side was not fatal. The poison the bullet was coated in was lethal. Akira had tried several times to use his mind to pull the bullet out of his wound, but it was embedded somewhere within him and hurt at every attempt. Akira was slowly dying.

Sam had tried to ignore all the signs, waving them all off with logical excuses and wishful thinking. Just as he had during the attack in search of his sisters.

Sam shakily stood to his feet. He cautiously made his way over to Akira, the rabbit forgotten. He paused mid-step when Akira turned his eyes on him, watching him carefully. Gulping, Sam continued to slink over to Akira's side, hoping his father wouldn't lash out again. He finally reached Akira's side and curled up next to him. He felt his father's tongue groom the top of his head.

"I'm sorry for attacking you, son." Akira said. "But I am not as strong as I used to be. Food will no longer help me nor do I feel hungry for it. My time is running short, Samuru."

Sam felt tears in his eyes as he listened to Akira.

"I don't want you to die." He confessed.

"I know." Akira gave Sam another lick. "This will be hard for you. Losing everyone you love and for a second time. I am heartbroken that I have lost my family, but I will do everything I still can to see that my son lives. I have taught you all you need to know. The rest you will learn as you grow. Your parents before me believed that you would survive on your own. I now share that same belief. You are strong, you're smart, and you will carry on my name. Perhaps not in blood, but in name, memories and stories you will tell your own children. And I will always be with, as will Okaasan and your sisters. You're going to do just fine. Just keep that temper of yours in check. You know what I say. Take a deep breath . . ."

"And shake it off." Sam concluded as he stood to his feet and shook himself, causing his fur to puff out before it slowly smoothed down.

"That's my boy." Akira nuzzled Sam as the kit laid back down next to him. "Sa daisuki."

"Otousan daisuki." Sam replied, nuzzling his father in return.

* * *

Two days later, the inevitable happened. Sam woke up from a nap next to his father, Akira's head close to his own. Sam licked his father's cheek, hoping for a smile from the older fox. Akira did not react at all, however. Sam licked him again and gently nuzzled him to wake the fox from his deep sleep, but Akira's eyes remained closed. Sam felt his heart race as he began to understand what happened. He watched for breathing and tried to listen for a heartbeat. After a long assessment to determine that there was nothing, Sam cried into his father's fur for nearly an hour.

Sam spent the rest of the day digging a hole for Akira behind the tombstone where Mai was buried. Natsumi's name was written on this side, but when Sam had his magic, he would put Akira's name as well.

Ishimori Akira it would say.

Digging the hole took several hours without Akira's help, but Sam focused on nothing else. As the sun was starting to set, he finally completed it and dragged his father over to the hole. He had to burn the fox before pushing his ashes and bones into the hole, due to his short flame length. While cremating his father and pushing his ashes over, tears never stopped falling from his eyes. It took another few hours to bury Akira.

When he was finished, he rested his forehead against the tombstone, a single tear escaping his tightly closed eyes.

"My family's demise was not my fault." Sam whispered.

Sam had a feeling he would be saying those words for a very long time.

* * *

 _: About forty-five years or so later, I could finally use my magic to add Akira's name to the tombstone. I stayed at the den for that time, fishing, hunting, and even fighting a couple bears for the larger fish. I even began shifting into my human form to start retraining myself ninjutsu. Well, the skills that didn't require a weapon. I remembered a lot from the previous reality._ Sam concluded.

"I'm sorry about Akira," Harry said. "I would be really sad if my dad died, too."

 _: Family is very hard to lose._

"Why didn't you leave the den?" Harry asked. "I mean your entire family was killed there. that had to be scary. Did it give you nightmares?"

 _: Now and then, yes. But it's also where my family is buried. And Akira told me that the only reason hunters would ever return to this site looking for kitsune is if that demon was still alive._

"Oh. Was he? Is he? Like right now?" Harry asked, eagerly.

 _: That is a story for another time._ Sam said. _Under the covers with you and to sleep. I am not sure when your father will be back, but I am sure he will come in to say goodnight whether your asleep or not._

Sam watched as Harry crawled under the blankets, snuggling the tiger plush.

 _: Very well. To sleep now._

"Wait," Harry said. "What about a goodnight hug?"

 _: Do I look capable of hugging?_ Sam tilted his head to the side, his ears perking up.

"I could hug you." Harry said.

 _: I'd rather not. It's not quite fox custom._

"Goodnight kiss?"

 _: I am not a dog, Harry. And I don't think it would be very appropriate of me._

Harry pouted for a moment.

"Goodnight nuzzle?" Harry asked.

 _: What?_ Sam tilted his head even more, reminding Harry of an owl.

"Well, it sounds like nuzzling is fox custom. Would you do a goodnight nuzzle? I feel like you don't like to be touched at all. Like humans disgust you or something." Harry argued.

 _: No, humans do not . . ._ Sam sighed. It wasn't that he didn't like to be touched, he just wasn't used to humans invading his personal space every few minutes. He also felt that his place was to serve and protect, not provide affection. Humans were odd in that way. _Very well. I suppose a goodnight nuzzle will do._

Sam stood from where he was sitting at the end of the bed and stepped towards Harry. Harry sat up slightly, smiling. Sam stretched out his neck and rubbed his cheek against Harry's. After a few seconds, he pulled back and used a paw to push Harry back down.

 _: There. Now go to sleep._ Sam encouraged.

"Thanks. Goodnight Sam." Harry said.

 _: Goodnight Harry._

Sam blew heavily through his nose on the bright candle that lit Harry's room, putting the flame out. Apparently, it was spelled to be brighter than normal. He used his tails to close the door behind him as he left Harry's room. Sam blew out a few other lit candles before retreating to his dog bed and lying down. A half hour later, he heard the entrance door to the quarters open and he sat up on the bed, allowing his three tails to curl around him.

Severus walked into the living room, softly shutting the door behind him.

"Evening, Sam." Severus nodded to the fox, who nodded once in return. "How was Harry?"

 _: Well behaved. Sam answered. He did everything he was supposed to, even took his potion. I told him more of my story and he fell right to sleep after. Although he wanted a goodnight nuzzle._

"And what may I ask is a goodnight nuzzle?" Severus smirked.

 _: I guess a new fox and human custom._ Sam answered, the white tips of his tails giving an amused flick. _I'm going to take off to hunt. I am determined to catch something other than rodents in that forest._

"Good luck, Sam." Severus snorted. "I'm going to say goodnight to Harry before I work on grading for a bit. Thank you for watching him for me."

 _: Of course,_ Sam nodded once more before misting and taking off into the Forbidden Forest.

* * *

daisuki - I love you. Thanks for reading. I hope you enjoyed. Feel free to review.


	6. Street Savoir-faire

I got so caught up with my other two stories, I nearly forgot about this one. Sorry for such a late update.

* * *

Ten-year-old Harry watched as Sam and his father fought with bokken swords, wooden Japanese training swords. It had been almost a year since Sam had come to live with them, and a long time since Sam told much more of his own life story. However, they had all been rather busy. Harry laughed as he watched his father fall to the ground, Sam standing victorious over the man.

Sam, in human form, was not very tall, Harry would estimate between 5'8 and 5'9. The man wasn't fair-skinned, he had a bit of a tan like color to him, but did not look like he had come from Japan, especially with his bushy, fox red hair. Sam's ears did not change in either form, but his thick hair covered them, except for when he lifted them straight up. Sam's eyes remained yellow and his teeth only shrunk into his gums.

Even though Sam wasn't above average height, he could still take down Severus, who happened to be 6'1. Harry always found it amusing that the charmed scoreboard always had more tallies for Sam than his father whenever they practiced their techniques.

Severus and Sam began sword fighting together after an incident where Severus had taken his anger out on Harry, hurting his son in the process. Harry rubbed at his arms in remembrance.

"Heads up!" Sam shouted as he threw an old looking knife.

Severus quickly rolled out of the way as the knife embedded itself into the wall.

"Sam!" Severus snarled.

"I gave a warning," Sam shrugged, smirking. "Be glad it's not a kunai."

Harry jumped off the windowsill his father had him sit on and ran over to the knife in the wall. Sam practiced a lot with the tanto, as the fox called it, and Harry was sure it was Sam's favorite and most prized possession, next to that mysterious dragon tooth around his neck. Sam also used a different knife at times for practice, but Harry had come to learn this tanto's unique wooden handle with the swirly and intricate designs. Sam didn't throw it often, preferring to practice stealthy attacks and techniques to get close to an opponent.

Harry grabbed the handle and pulled, trying to remove the knife from the wall. It must have been deep in there. Harry used both hands and pulled hard, but the knife wouldn't budge.

"Easy on that, Harry," Sam said, walking over to him. "That thing's two hundred years older than you."

Sam appeared behind Harry, and with ease, he pulled the knife out of the wall. Severus joined them, fixing the wall with a simple wave of his hand.

"Can I try throwing it?" Harry asked.

"No," Sam frowned at him, "it would be better to learn some defense techniques with the knife rather than throwing it and hoping it hits you're opponent."

"You throw it," Harry argued.

"I'm also over three hundred years old and have wielded it for quite some time."

"No fair," Harry pouted.

"Harry," Severus warned.

Harry glanced at his father's warning look and decided he should change the topic. He looked at the knife and then up at Sam.

"Where did you get the knife?" He asked.

"I bought it," Sam answered.

"Did you really?" Severus smirked. "That surprises me."

"Well, I did steal the money I needed to buy it," Sam smiled in his foxy way.

Severus shook his head at the fox, grabbing a towel and wiping his face before taking a few gulps of water from a nearby glass.

"Now that doesn't surprise me," he said.

"Why didn't you just steal the knife, then?" Harry asked.

"Security was increasing and it's easier to steal from commoners than a guarded armor shop," Sam explained.

"Can you tell me the story?" Harry sat down on the padded floor excitedly to listen.

Sam looked at Severus.

"I'm going to take a shower and then work on a few assignments. There's about an hour until lunch," Severus said, before leaving.

"Very well," Sam said, "I guess I can tell you."

Sam picked up the pitcher of water on a table and dumped the cold liquid over his head. Harry laughed as Sam's hair flattened over his face and neck, revealing the large fox ears quite clearly. Sam shook his head, spreading droplets of water everywhere.

"Sam," Harry laughed as he was sprayed. Sam smirked at Harry. "You need a haircut."

"I agree," Sam said. "My hair wasn't always this long. The only way it grows is if I stay in human form for a long time."

"So, why is your hair long, now?"

"That's a story for another time," Sam answered. "I believe you wanted me to tell you how I got the tanto."

"Yeah," Harry leaned forward slightly.

Sam sat on the floor with Harry, holding out the nine-inch blade tanto.

"I think I was in my early hundreds, a hundred and ten maybe. My curiosity led me to explore a small growing city, and I saw this knife through the window . . ."

* * *

Sam stood outside the shop in his human form, staring at the tanto on display. It looked like the knife he had had in the previous world, if it wasn't the same one. In the previous world, Sam had stolen the knife from a man hunter that had been trying to kill him. The knife had landed some injuries on him, including a deep shoulder wound. It was almost contradictory how attached he became with the weapon.

Now, Sam had nothing. It would be a chance to start over, perhaps earn the right to own the knife this time. But having nothing included having no money. He would need to collect some before he could step into the shop. Sam looked around. With larger cities in the making came a larger human population. And Sam had learned that humans were easy to outwit.

In his human form, Sam was relatively short. He was still growing, too, considering being in your early hundreds was equivalent to being in your teens. Sam was probably around five feet tall, give or take an inch. His hair was the color of his red fur, but his unchanged ears stuck out above the short hair. ("Unlike now," Sam was telling Harry, "my hair was more like your friends – the Weasley twins. No thicker or longer than that.")

Sam's eyes and teeth were unchanged, as well, though his teeth shrank back into his gums for room accommodations. Yet, he never smiled or opened his mouth wide or long enough for humans to get a good look, and most humans never paid much attention to the eyes. Humans were not great at maintaining eye contact. Doing so could be taken as a threat.

Sam was more concerned about his ears. Even if he laid them flat against his head, they were still obvious, large bumps with black tips on his head. The hair stuck out a bit in the Japanese country, anyway. Sam hated to do so, as it made him look suspicious, but he pulled up the hood of the large black cloak he wore and walked out into the streets of the 1790s' city.

Sam kept his hood up as he studied some of the commoners. He could tell who carried money on them simply by the way they dressed. Sam saw one man walking towards him, wearing a sika deerskin coat. Sam quickly observed as he neared the man, spying a small pouch tied to a flap like section of the coat. Sam lowered his head, watching his feet for a moment, and purposely running into the man, their shoulders colliding.

The man turned sharply, glaring at Sam.

"My . . . sincere apologies," Sam said, bowing at a 45-degree angle, hands at his sides, the small pouch clutched tightly in one of his fists, obscuring it from the man's view.

Sam waited for the man to return the bow and walk away before backing up into an alleyway and dumping the contents of the pouch into his hand. He smiled at the several obans and kobans that fell into his hand ("Just old Asian money, Harry,"). He would need more though.

Sam continued through the streets, searching for another victim. He saw a few street performers ahead, playing soft, traditional music on homemade instruments. As Sam neared, he pulled out one of the kobans and flips it in the air before placing it in the clay pot sitting on a large rock. Quickly, Sam scooped up what coins were inside, keeping ahold of his own koban, and removed his hand. He nodded to the performers who nodded in return.

Sam counted what he had and decided a little more wouldn't hurt. He saw a young woman in a floral dress, carrying a fancy pink parasol, walking near a stone wall. The necklace she wore, however, caught Sam's attention. The gold color it reflected told Sam it cost quite a few obans.

Using his mind, Sam forced one of the stones on the wall to slip out in front of the woman, tripping her. Rushing forward, Sam caught the young lady before she could hit the ground. They made eye contact briefly, but Sam looked away before the lady could determine the color of his eyes. Before standing her up, Sam broke the fragile chain in his fingers so it slipped off the woman's neck. He stood her up, using the movement of her rising to pull the necklace away and to the small pouch that was filling up.

The young beauty prepared to bow, but Sam held her up.

"No, no," Sam said, "none of that, really. It was my pleasure."

Sam bowed respectfully to her, kissing her hand briefly before walking away. Sam noted the shy woman fan herself behind the beautiful design of her sensu, more than likely hiding a smile.

Sam used his mind to mend the necklace so it was in perfect condition to be sold.

Sam entered a small store and gave the necklace to the man running it. It wasn't worth as much as he had originally thought, but it would give him enough.

Sam sold the necklace, earning two more obans. He finally had enough to buy the knife. It would be his rightfully, regardless of how he earned, or stole, the money for it. No one could prove anything.

* * *

"And, that's pretty much it," Sam concluded. "I bought the knife and . . . end of story. Nothing too exciting."

"You are a horrible thief!" Harry frowned. "You stole from innocent people!"

"I wouldn't say a horrible thief," Sam smirked. "A smart one, to be more precise. And no one is ever truly innocent. I'm sure those street performers stole food daily to survive. And that rich fellow could have spared more than I took."

"And the lady?"

"Spoiled."

"That's not very nice to say. And how do you know?"

"How did I know, you mean?" Sam corrected. "I didn't."

Harry frowned at Sam. The fox wasn't going to find fault in what he did.

"Well, did you ever use the knife?" Harry asked.

"Of course. Practiced with it every day."

"I mean like for fighting."

"I'm not sharing any of those stories."

"Why?"

"They are not kid appropriate."

"Please?" Harry begged. "I won't get scared."

"That's not the point – and trust me, my stories would scare you."

"No, they wouldn't."

Sam sighed, knowing he wasn't going to get anywhere with the stubborn Snape child. He thought of all his adventures, remembering one particular day.

"Alright, this event isn't too bad," Sam took a second to think. "It was a couple days after buying it actually. I guess I wasn't being too careful with my thieving, perhaps even becoming a little – what word do you use – cocky, is it? And that same day, something extraordinary happened . . ."

* * *

Sam knew from the moment he had snatched the chicken that he had been seen. In Sam's defense, he had only acted on pure instinct, although he wasn't in fox form. He had only picked up the tiny bird when the farmer had thrown some kind of forked tool at him. And he wasn't even in fox form. Somehow, the entire city had found out what he had done, and now official men were hot on his heels.

Apparently, a farmer's stock was very important and valuable and not something to mess with.

Currently Sam was standing in an alleyway out of sight, the hood of his black cloak covering his ears. He could hear the shouting from the men looking for him. It would take too long to undress and shift so he could just mist away. Sam heard footsteps approaching and he watched a man's shadow grow larger.

Sam sighed as the man looked down his alley and spotted him.

 _Here we go_ , Sam thought.

"I have him!" the man shouted and swung a sword at Sam.

Sam jumped back, avoiding the move. Amateur, he thought. Sam kept himself turned sideways as he watched the man. The man charged forward with the sword.

 _Really?_ _All of this for picking up someone else's chicken? I dropped it!_

Sam ran out of the alleyway, dropped to the ground and slid towards the man, locking his legs around the man's and knocking him to the ground. Sam snatched the sword from the man and stabbed his shoulder, pinning him to the ground. The man gave a shrill scream.

Sam left the man to figure out how to free himself, if he even could. More men were approaching. Sam slid into another nearby alley, allowing the men to pass. When he believed all the men were in the next alley, Sam stepped out and nearly collided with someone. He had miscalculated how many men were after him.

Before the man could scream or raise his sword, Sam raised his knife, slit the man's throat, covered the man's mouth and lowered him to the ground swiftly.

A lot of people seemed to be coming out of one building, perhaps an event had taken place, and Sam casually joined the crowd. Sam didn't look back, just kept walking. It wasn't a hard strategy, but Sam hated that he didn't have any normal looking clothes. The black cloak would obviously stick out, but he wore no shirt under it and deerskin pants. He would only blend in so much. After a moment of doing just so, he heard a man shout.

"There! I see him – there!"

Sam knew when he had been spotted. With his attire, it was unlikely the men would mistaken another being for him. Without having to turn around, he instinctively knew he was being chased after and ran through the crowd of people. He purposely pushed a couple ladies, knocking them over, hoping a couple men would try and save them from their fall.

 _Sorry, ladies. No time to be a gentleman._

Sam left the crowd and retreated to a new alley closer to the end of the city. It would be a straight shot run from here to the trees of the forest. However, Sam knew the men were following him. He didn't need them following him to his only safety. He would need to strip anyway to shift and that wasted time. Sam pulled himself up against the building, waiting for the men to show up.

"I saw him come this way," a man said as he neared the alley.

"Are you sure?" Another asked. "Why do we bother chasing him? He didn't actually take the chicken, did he?"

"That doesn't matter," the man returned. "Thieves start out small, then they go for the big stuff. Next, he'll be snatching cows or sneaking into houses and stealing the women."

Sam frowned as he listened. _How quickly humans judge and assume._ He looked at a cart sitting nearby. It was full of melons. It probably belonged to whoever lived in that side door to the building, possibly a seller of the fruit. Sam pulled the cart over to where he was standing just as the men looked down the alleyway.

Sam broke a wheel off the cart and pushed it forward, sending the melons falling on to the unsuspecting men. The men had to catch themselves from tripping over the melons and being ran over by the crumbling cart while Sam disappeared from the alley. That was the last he saw of those men.

Sam returned to the forest, quickly stripping off his clothes, tossing his knife into the air and shifting into a fox. He caught the knife before it landed and placed the tanto, along with his clothes, in a tree hole where he had several other knick knacks, from stolen valuables to found artifcts. He misted on the branch and flew through the trees, following the many secret pathways deeper into the forest. As he neared his home den and flew over the river, he solidified back into Sam and ran the rest of the way to the clearing. He took a moment to catch his breath, smirking in the direction he had come from.

Since his father's passing, Sam had cleaned up his home. He had added Akira's name to the headstone that had the rest of his family's names, right above Natsumi's. Sam made sure the headstone was free of any debris, such as fallen tree branches, weeds, or unwanted critters. He had started a garden around it, and several sakurasous, fringed irises, buttercups, tiger lilies and kiku all surrounded the tombstone. A single rose grew in the front.

Sam trotted over to the flowers and gently nudged a wilting fringed iris. Sam ran to the river and took a mouthful of water before running back to the tombstone. He spat the water out at the base of the sad iris. He smiled at the plants, breathing in the wonderful smells before retreating to the den. He still slept in his section of the den, refusing to take over his parents' larger compartment. All he had to do was widen his part a bit more and he fit perfectly fine as a normal sized fox.

Sam closed his eyes, wanting to rest for the afternoon until he went hunting later that night. He kept to the schedule his father had had him follow during those last few weeks of his life. Sam fell asleep quickly, happily dreaming of a time when he was a kit and his family was still alive:

"Samuru, hold still!"

Sam yelped as Mai nipped his rear. He was on his back in between Mai's paws just outside the den. He had been trying to roll over so he could make a run for it.

"Ow! Okaasan!" Sam whined. He didn't know Mai could still reach his rear, though his attempts at turning over probably made it easier for her to do. "That hurt."

"I told you to be still," Mai scolded lightly. "Now let me finish your bath or I'll nip you again."

Mai dragged her tongue over Sam's stomach, tickling the kit. Sam laughed before trying to roll over again.

"But Okaasan, I'm already clean!" Sam complained.

Sam tried to squirm out of his mother's paws when he saw his three sisters run by. Natsumi was busy playing tag with Hoshiko and Rini, and Sam really wanted to join in on the fun. It was a sunny, warm day, but his mother insisted on the bath.

"Sa," Mai growled, lowering her head to nip if she needed to, "enough squirming."

Sam saw his mother's head lower and he immediately stopped moving, hoping she wouldn't nip him. When Mai resumed his bath, he huffed and submitted, laughing slightly as she ran over his ticklish spots on the white fur of his stomach.

"You could have been done yesterday, like the girls, but you wanted to wait until today," Mai said.

"I was hoping you'd forget," Sam admitted. Sam hated baths, whether it was Mai or Akira, though he knew his father would have nipped him more than once if he squirmed and tried to get away as much as he was for Mai. That was the benefit of having his mother bathe him - less nippings for his resistance.

"I don't forget," Mai smirked at her young kit, rubbing her nose against his.

Mai finished with his underside and nudged Sam to roll over so she could start on his back. Sam rolled over and felt his mother's tongue run up his back.

Natsumi ran over to them, crawling over Mai as Hoshi ran after her. Sam watched amused as Natsumi and Hoshi laughed on both sides of their mother and watched each other's moves as Natsumi tried to decide which way to run to avoid being tagged. Rini stood off to the side, waiting for the other two to come running back her way. Finally, Natsumi bolted to the right, with Hoshi right behind her. Sam lowered himself and then pounced forward, trying to follow his sisters. His mother grabbed him by his scruff and pulled him back, however.

"I'm not done with you, Sa," Mai said.

"Okaasan," Sam whined, "I want to play."

Mai continued to groom him, pointedly ignoring him. Sam pouted as his mother finished with his back, his ears dropped to the sides. Mai worked on Sam's tail for a few seconds before finishing with the back of Sam's head and neck.

"Turn around," Mai said gently.

Sam turned and sat before his mother, pouting and waiting for her to finish. Mai smiled down at him amused.

"There's my handsome tod," Mai cooed at him.

Sam perked up and smiled at his mother, sitting up straighter, pushing his chest out.

"Look at you, stunning red fur with a star," Mai continued, grooming the top of Sam's head.

Sam's smile grew, enjoying the praise he was being given. Mai finished with Sam's bath and beamed down at her son.

"You'll be just as handsome when you're older. I'm sure all the vixens will pounce you," Mai's prideful smile turned into a sad smile. "I just hope there will be vixens left for you."

Mai gave Sam a gentle lick on each cheek. Sam smiled up at her.

"I'm back, Mai," Akira announced as he stepped out of the trees, "I've a deer hidden up in a tree."

"Oh good," Mai said to him, "I'll help you bring it back to the clearing."

Akira greeted his daughters, giving each one a lick as they came to nuzzle him before chasing each other again. Then, Akira nuzzled Mai briefly before looking at Sam.

"I see you've finished with your bath," Akira observed as he gave Sam a nuzzle, rubbing his cheek against Sam's.

"Yes, Otousan," Sam said.

"Did you hold still like a good boy?"

"Uh . . ."

"He did fine, Akira," Mai defended, "leave him be. He's going to be my very handsome tod when he's older." Mai nuzzled her nose against Sam's, making the small kit laugh.

Suddenly, Sam felt himself pushed away from Mai and he fell roughly to the ground. His wonderful memory fell apart and disappeared and the sky in his dream grew dark. Sam stared at Akira, who had not disappeared. Sam looked down at himself and realized he was at his largest size, matching his father.

"Follow me, Samuru," Akira said before bolting through the trees. Sam quickly followed him, wondering why his dream had suddenly changed and wondering what Akira wanted from him.

Dream Akira moved swiftly through the trees, it was hard for Sam to keep up with him. Away from the den, past the river, climbing on rooftops through the city, and into the forest on the other side. Sam had no idea where he was going, but followed anyway. They came upon another city and at this point had to be miles away from home now, but Akira continued running.

Finally, in the trees just past the second city, in the center of a large clearing, was a massive, white, square-shaped building.

Akira just sat there staring at the building from within the trees. Sam sat next to him, wondering what the building meant. Akira looked at him.

"Remember your promise," Akira said before snarling at the building. "Save her."

Sam was about to ask Akira what and who he was talking about when the fox ran forward straight toward the building. Humans with swords and guns appeared in the clearing.

"Otousan, wait!" Sam called to his father.

The fox did not stop. Sam remembered the sounds of dogs barking, gun shots going off, screams of dying foxes, and the noises grew louder inside his head. Sam closed his eyes and tried to shake the sounds away.

"Otousan, help me! Make them stop!"

The horrible sounds of that devastating day only increased until he heard a familiar kit's scream –

"Samuru!"

"Natsumi!" Sam's eyes flew open as he called out his sister's name. He breathed heavy as he looked around. He was in his part of the den. He hadn't gone anywhere.

It had all been a dream. Sam breathed heavy.

"My family's demise was not my fault," Sam muttered, resting his head on his paws. "My family's demise was not my fault."

Sam still spoke those words every night.

* * *

"Was it really a dream, though?" Harry asked.

"I'll never understand what it was – a dream, a nightmare, a vision. I like to think that it was my father's spirit coming to tell me I needed to do. This wasn't the last time he's appeared in my dreams and given me a message."

"Well, what happened next? Did the building exist? Did you go there? Is Natsumi alive?"

"Come on, you two!" Severus called from the doorway. "It's lunchtime."

Sam smirked at Harry.

"I guess that's a story for another time."

"You're always saying that," Harry pouted. "Can you teach me how to be street smart? I want to learn how to steal!"

"Being street smart isn't so much about knowing how to steal," Sam corrected. "It's about knowing how to survive. And it cannot be taught. You must learn through experience."

"Oh," Harry thought about how hard that would be since he never had to 'survive' as Sam had had to.

"I can, however," Sam continued, "teach you a little self-defense. With your father's permission, of course."

"That would be great, Sam."

Harry wrapped his arms around Sam, squeezing tightly. Sam patted his back and ruffled Harry's hair.

"Now," Sam pulled away after a moment, "head on to lunch so I may shift and join you."

"Why can't you shift with clothes on?" Harry asked.

"I'm not quite sure where your clothes go when you shift into your animagus, but my clothes do not change with me or magically disappear. And if I shift while wearing something, I'll probably end up getting tangled in it."

Harry laughed, imagining fox Sam trying to squirm out of a shirt.

"As amusing as I'm sure that picture is, will you leave so I may undress?" Sam asked, smirking.

"Okay," Harry turned to leave, "thanks for the story, Sam."

"Of course."

* * *

Hope it wasn't too bad. An exciting chapter coming up! Feel free to review.


	7. Sam to the Rescue

Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!

* * *

"Sam's going to tell me more of his story," Harry said as he jumped in bed and allowed his father to tuck him in. "I think he feels a lot better about how his story turns out from now on – now that he's gotten through his family's murder. Are you going to stay and listen with me?"

"If that's what you want, Harry," Severus smiled at his son, sitting on the edge of the bed.

"Yesterday," Harry continued, "Sam told me that his father, Akira, appeared to him in a dream. He led Sam to this big white building and told him to 'remember his promise.' I wonder what it meant."

 _: I believe,_ Sam said as he entered the room, _that he also told me to 'save her.'_

"Oh yeah," Harry smiled at Sam, snuggling into his pillow to prepare to listen.

Sam jumped up on Harry's bed, taking his usual seat at the end. He wrapped his three tails around him and gave a tilt of his head.

 _: I believe you'll find this next part of my story exciting,_ Sam smirked, the black lips curling. He looked at Severus. _Staying or leaving?_

"Well," Severus said, moving to lay next to Harry, "if the next part is as exciting as you say, I guess I'll remain."

 _: Very well._ Sam shook his head and scratched at an ear. _I'm sure you know that there are strange creatures in the Forbidden Forest. Dangerous ones. Large and massive._

Harry nodded.

 _: In Japan, we also have strange creatures that most people would classify as – uh – magical, I guess. Creatures that try to stay out of human eyes, like myself. Some even stranger than what you have here._

"Like what?" Harry asked, curling up against his father's side. Severus wrapped an arm around Harry.

 _: Like a bunch of wild ghost pigs,_ Sam answered _. If one runs between your legs, they rip your soul out right from under you._

"That's weird," Harry said. "And creepy."

 _: And there's several more,_ Sam chuckled, producing a cough like sound, though Harry heard laughter in his head. _Mind you, I'll change as many words to make this more kid friendly. I wasn't called the nicest things during this event. After that dream, I managed to fall back to sleep, waking up by nightfall. I figured I had nothing to lose, and began my journey to where the dream had led me. I discovered that that white building did exist . . ._

* * *

Sam stared at the large, square-shaped, white building, presently the size of a large wolf. The building looked old with its shattered windows, rotting wooden doors, and the ivy growing up the sides, eating its way into the walls. He was feeling at odds with himself. He wanted to explore the strange structure, but he also wanted to turn away and never look back. The building unsettled him. There was something wrong with it, something dangerous – he could sense it, smell it. He was far away from his home, miles away, and he wanted to return to the safety he felt there.

A sound drew Sam's attention to the right and he looked out into the clearing. Two men were pulling on ropes attached to a large, covered up rectangle on wheels. The blanket over the rectangle seemed to breathe and Sam could here grunts and angry sounds from inside. The rectangle was several feet taller than the men, and several more feet longer. Harry wondered what could be inside. The large, rotted wooden doors opened and the rectangle was pulled into a lighted area.

Sam quickly misted and flew inside the building, deciding that he was brought there for some kind of purpose.

Inside, Sam landed on a wooden beam near the ceiling and solidified. The several beams were probably support for the structure. Sam realized that it was a large open space, and there were several cages – metal and wooden alike, glass enclosures and a large, circular aquarium with a big shark inside. Inside the enclosures and cages were several animals of various kinds, snarling, growling, hissing, spitting – or cowering. The floor of the building was grass and dirt, and Sam figured that the building was built in a rush or simply done lazily. Several lit lanterns and torches on the walls lit the inside up.

Sam watched as the two men finished pulling the rectangle in to a free section before pulling off the sheet that covered it.

It was a metal cage, and inside was a large bear.

"An onikuma!" Sam exclaimed, leaning down to get a better look.

The bear, or onikuma, stood on two feet in the cage and rushed at the men, swiping a large paw at one. It walked around the enclosure, snarling, before dropping down on all fours. Sam knew about such bears. They would sneak into villages and cities and steal a horse or two to feed on. The bear let out a strange roar, unhappy with its' new home.

"Let's go get the others," one of the two men said, walking back towards the doors. "The ship to Hong Kong comes first thing in the morning, and all these beasts will be removed from Japan, sold for who knows what."

"Let's tell the boss of our new addition," the second man said.

The two men left, shutting the large doors behind them.

Sam misted and flew down to the doors and solidified before them. He looked at the huge space that held all the mystical creatures and felt pity for them. He began to walk down the aisle, glancing at each animal.

The bear had begun pacing in his cage, alternating between walking on two legs and crawling on four. The bear growled at Sam as the fox passed his cage.

Sam gave the poor animal some room and looked at the other side of the aisle. He saw a glass enclosure that had several baby pigs. They were black in color and all of them had one ear. Sam noticed that despite all the light in the warehouse, none of them were casting a single shadow. A few pigs were running around inside, while several others were piled on top of each other. The pigs squeled at him, giving him a curious and somehow pleading look. He frowned, wondering what they were, but continued walking ( _: I later discovered that they are called Katakirauwa._ )

Sam looked at a large metal cage where a lady was leaning against the metal bars. Sam only noticed her upper half – her sparkling brown eyes with long black hair. It looked like she was wearing a silky, white dress.

"Help me," the lady begged, reaching out a hand to Sam. "Help me, please."

Sam felt horrible and sympathy for the lady. He walked a bit closer to her cage, wondering where the lock on it was.

However, as he neared, the lady rose and Sam saw that the lady's lower half was a large spider body, resembling the back of a Joro spider. Eight, hairy legs clawed at the bars.

"Help me!" The lady screamed, snatching Sam by the ear and dragging him toward her waiting legs, silky webs forming.

Sam yelped and misted, flying out of the Joro – Gumo's grip. He solidified back on the floor and backed away, running into the metal cage behind him. A hairy, spider limb tapped him and Sam jumped and spun around.

In this cage was a creature with a tiger's body, spider limbs, and a face of a demon. It gave Sam a curious look, twitching its long-striped tail. A tsuchigumo. Sam backed away from it and jumped ahead down the aisle, away from the spider like creatures.

Sam breathed heavy, glancing behind him briefly. Sam looked up a strange wooden house-like structure with netting nailed all over it. A bunch of crows sat on perches inside. Sam looked closely at them and realized that they all had three legs. Yatagarasu, a rather welcomed spirit in the Japanese world. The birds ruffled their feathers and looked at Sam curiously. Sam estimated there were about twenty or so in the enclosure.

Across from the birdcage was the large aquarium. The shark swam in circles inside, following the shape of the aquarium. Its fins looked odd, like a cheese grater. Sam remembered Akira telling him stories of an Isonade, a mythical shark.

Sam continued moving forward and he saw another metal cage with a large chicken, Sam guessing its height at about seven feet. The chicken looked like any other chicken, just large. Akira had also told him stories of a Basan, a fire-breathing chicken. However, the chicken could only breathe fire at a certain age, when it was taller than the bamboo trees themselves. This one was still a juvenile and probably unable to do much. The chicken gave Sam a blank look.

Across from the chicken in a glass enclosure with several airholes were three weasels. Sam approached their enclosure as he walked by. The weasels were all curled up together, but sensing his approach, they jumped up and looked at him curiously, hoping over each other to follow Sam as he passed. They were adorable, in Sam's opinion, brown, furry critters with a little, black nose and a black mask on their face. However, they had long, overgrown claws on their front paws, sickle like in a way.

Kamaitachi, Sam thought to himself, sickle weasels.

Sam paused to watch the three weasels as they stared at him. They pawed at their enclosure.

Sam felt bad as he walked away from them, moving on to the last two enclosures in the warehouse.

One of the enclosures was a huge, long box. It was a wooden structure with several locks down its nearly fifty feet length. It was a wide box as well, nearly twelve feet across with several small airholes. It rested up against the wall, and Sam realized that the box almost took up the entire length of the warehouse. He had missed it before due to the box being behind the other enclosure. Sam was getting a good view of the end of it. Sam wondered what could possibly be in the box.

Sam looked over at the last enclosure. It was a smaller, metal cage with tighter bars and inside was a small, normal sized fox, curled up with its tail covering its face.

 _Natsumi!_

Sam ran over to the cage and jumped up on his hind paws as he pawed at the metal.

"Natsumi!" Sam called to her.

Natsumi lifted her head. She stared at Sam for a minute, blinking as she tilted her head, her black tipped ears, pivoting slightly.

"Otousan?" Natsumi asked, standing slightly, peering at Sam.

"No, Sumi," Sam said gently, smiling at her, "it's me – Samuru."

"Samuru?" Natsumi took a couple cautious steps forward as she eyed the larger fox. Her eyes seemed to sparkle as she recognized her long lost brother. She smiled. "Samuru!"

Natsumi charged forward and reached her muzzle out of the bars. Sam nuzzled his sister, tears dampening the fur around his eyes. He had found his sister. She was alive, albeit thin and lacking muscle. She had grown into a beautiful vixen, however, despite everything she had been through.

"I can't believe I found you," Sam said, licking his sister's muzzle.

"I can't believe you're alive," Natsumi said, her voice older and more beautiful than ever, in Sam's opinion. "What about our sisters? Otousan? Okaasan?"

Sam gave Natsumi a sad look.

"No," Sam whispered, "no one else. Just me – and you, now."

"How did you find me?"

"I think Otousan led me to you. In my dream, he – he brought me here. He –"

Sam was starting to realize that he had had more than just a dream. However, the doors flew open and several men walked into the large building. Animals cowered at the sight of them.

Sam jumped down from the cage and backed out of sight. Natsumi followed him around her cage, keeping him in her sight.

"You've got to get me out of here," Natsumi said.

"I will, don't worry," Sam said, "I'm not leaving you. Not ever. I just need a plan."

Sam could hear the men walking in their direction. He continued to back away.

"Hold on, Natsumi," Sam said as he disappeared behind some boxes of supplies and weapons in the far back of the building.

"Sa, no!" Natsumi cried, pawing frantically at the cage bars. "No! Don't leave me, don't leave me! Come back!"

Sam hated himself for leaving his sister as he heard her cries. He peered around the boxes and watched a few men stop in front of Natsumi's cage. Natsumi lowered herself and cowered in the far back of the enclosure. Sam snarled softly as he watched the men.

"Look at her," one of the men said, "Just look at her. Pathetic."

I'll show you pathetic, Sam thought, snarling more.

"She wasn't the oldest kit," the man continued. "I saw him, I almost had him. He got away, though. He's still out there. This one was the best I could get. She has yet to even breathe a flame, forget any other power kitsune have. Just pathetic."

Natsumi shook in the corner she had curled up in, her eyes locked on the talking man.

Sam peered closely at the man speaking. He wasn't a native. He had dirty blond hair, was taller than the Japanese men, and his eyes . . .

The man turned away from the cage to speak to one of the quietly to one of the men. Sam's eyes widened and he hid behind the box, panting heavily. The grey eyes! The demon man that had led the attack on his family. The one that killed his parents, both sets of parents. Sam's biggest enemy. And the demon still had his sister.

"What do you want done, Damion?" a man asked the demon man.

"I want all of these animals prepared for shipment. They will be meeting some new friends very shortly for study and science," the demon, Damion, spoke and smirked. "And we will all be very wealthy."

No, not Natsumi! Sam growled in his head. Sam peered out from behind the boxes, ignoring whatever else the men were discussing. His eyes fell on the weasels, who caught his eyes. They stared at each other, the weasels' eyes full of fear.

Sam looked away. None of the animals deserved to leave their home country. He would free them all. Sam smirked – and what better distraction than that?

Sam misted and flew up to the high beams and solidified. He looked down and counted the men. With Damion, there was only five other men. Sam could hear more outside, however. Several more. Deciding it was now or never, Sam revealed his presence.

 _: Hey Damion!_ Sam called out with his mind to all the men.

Everyone looked up at him in the high beams. Damion's mouth fell open before contorting into a smirk while an evil glint appeared in his eyes. Natsumi looked up from her place in the corner.

 _: What idiot,_ Sam continued (watching his language, of course), _collects a bunch of dangerous monsters and puts them all in one place?_

"Come back for revenge, little kit?" Damion called to him. "After what I've done to your family – you dare challenge me? Or –"

Damion looked at the kitsune in the cage and smiled.

"I see, you came to rescue your little sister," Damion laughed out loud as he turned to look at Sam. "I'd like to see you try."

 _: Challenge accepted,_ Sam snarled before misting and flying through the warehouse.

"After him," Damion snapped at the five men. They quickly armed themselves and searched the building.

Damion looked at Natsumi before covering her cage with a sheet lying in a box nearby. He pulled out a gun with bullets laced with poison.

 _: Over here, Damion,_ Sam called to him. He was lying on top of the weasels' enclosure. The three weasels were staring up at him, pawing at the glass to be released. _What are these guys?_

Damion seemed to know exactly what he intended to do.

"Get off of that!" Damion growled, motioning to the men to return to him and fight the fox. He kept his distance, however, not wanting to encourage Sam to free the weasels. "Don't do anything stupid. You'll be suicidal to release them."

 _: Oh, come now, I think they're adorable._ Sam looked at the furry faces of the weasels who nodded in agreement at him, desperate to be let out. _How dangerous can these little guys be? Whoops._

As Sam jumped off the glass enclosure, he put extra force in his leap and caused the small enclosure to turn over and fall smashing to the ground. The weasels shook themselves free of shattered glass before looking at the five approaching men. The three weasels stood side by side and hissed, showing off their long, sickle claws.

Sam watched as the weasels ran forward. The five men panicked and turned and ran for the walls with the lanterns. The weasels caught two of them. Sam tilted his head. The weasels moved too fast to see what exactly they were doing, but as they moved from one man to the next, Sam noticed that the men's legs were cut clean off. However, the stumps the men now had were somehow stitched up, leaving the men in a state of pure shock before they cried out as the pain finally reached their head. Yet there was never any blood.

What a strange trio, Sam thought.

Sam turned his head to see that though two men had lost their legs, the rest of the men, including Damion, had managed to grab torches off the wall and they swung the fire at the weasels. The small trio stayed together and hissed at the men, but stayed clear of the fire.

"Call for more men!" Damion demanded.

A man backed away from the weasels, keeping the torch low before running to gather more men to help recapture the weasels – and catch a fox.

Sam quickly moved to where the blank looking chicken stood in his cage. He hid behind the chicken's cage as Damion's men chased after the weasels, several more men joining from outside with swords, guns, and other weapons. Damion stopped in front of the chicken's cage, turning to stare at the bird.

Sam nearly stopped breathing as he peered through the bars, thinking, can he sense me?

Damion slowly moved around the cage, Sam moving as well, keeping the distance between them.

Thinking quickly, Sam saw the single lock that held the chicken captive and breathed a steady flow of fire on it. He heard Damion's footsteps quicken. Sam melted the lock, then used his mouth to wrench the bars open, freeing the massive bird.

Sam ran off just as Damion appeared and the chicken stepped out. Sam moved on towards the crows birdhouse, jumping up on the roof of it, then looked back just in time to see Damion shoot the chicken. Sam flinched at the sound of the gunfire. The chicken fell to the ground. So much for that bird.

"You should have been mine, you damn fox!" Damion told him, moving towards him, pointing the antique pistol at him. "I'd really hate to put a bullet in you, so why don't you surrender now. At the cost of your sister's freedom, perhaps?"

 _: I don't trust you,_ Sam growled as the man now stood in front of the large bird cage.

"You don't have to," Damion smirked. "But I'm sure you wouldn't want to risk your sister's life."

 _: You leave her out of this!_

"Then surrender yourself to me and I shall let your sister go."

Sam refused to fall for the bait. He coughed up a large fireball, aiming it at the wooden door of the birdcage. The twenty or so birds flew out and at Damion, who covered his face with his arms as the talons lashed out at him. The three-legged birds flew the men searching for the weasels, scratching at their faces and arms, disarming several of them before flying away into the night.

Amidst the chaos, Sam coughed up another fireball, tossing it across the room at the spider-lady's cage, freeing her. The creature crawled out of her blown up enclosure and began wrapping men in a silky mass of webs. Several men starting shooting at her.

Damion snarled under his breath in anger at the freed creatures, watching his entire profit disappear. He let out an animal-like growl before aiming his pistol at Sam, but the fox was gone.

Sam moved through the rest of the warehouse. He freed the baby pigs and watched as they ran to the trees outside. When the men saw the pigs running free, several turned and ran while others put their legs together and stood their ground. A little black pig ran through the leg of a slow runner to keep up with the others. The unlucky man jolted and fell to the ground dead. Another man also jolted as a pig ran between his legs and he fell to the ground dead.

Sam moved on and freed the other animals locked in cages. The bear walked on two legs as it mauled men. The strange tiger body-spider limbs-demon faced creature leaped on men scrambling to get away from the several released monsters. Sam looked at the shark and felt sorry that there was nothing he could do for the water creature. The shark seemed oblivious to the action going on however.

Sam turned and ran back to his sister's enclosure. He pulled off the blanket that was covering the cage, only to find the cage empty.

"Samuru!" He heard his sister's frightened voice call him.

Sam spun around and stared at Damion, who held his sister by her scruff with the pistol pointed at her head.

"Seize what you are doing and surrender or the vixen dies," Damion growled.

 _: Let her go,_ Sam snarled, his fur bristling and canines showing.

"You've ruined everything!" Damion snapped, tightening his grip on a whining Natsumi. "Years of searching, studying, fighting and selling – you've destroyed everything!"

 _: What do you want from all of these animals anyway?_ Sam bought time as he moved toward the large box. The demon man watched his moves closely, turning with Sam.

"Be still, fox!" Damion said, his eyes flicking to the large box, "You've no idea what's in there! These animals are creatures humans do not understand. Do not need to understand. Do not even know exist. They are better off dead roaming the hell they belong in – where I can feed off them without ever having to come to Earth."

 _: Feed off?_ Sam looked disgusted. _What are you?_

"A demon of hell." Damion answered, tightening his hold even more on Natsumi's scruff. Natsumi whimpered in pain. "I possessed this human hundreds of years ago, killed its family, and have captured thousands of creatures around the world, sending them to hell where I shall return. Japan is my last country to visit and I will not have some little fox ruining my mission!"

Sam backed up into the large, long box. He could sense a large beast inside and he knew that whatever was within had to have been the most difficult monster to catch. Sam used his mind to pry at the locks. He wished his tail would develop its foxfire, that would have been useful. However, he knew that most foxes didn't start tail fire until mid-one hundred and he had some ways to go.

The locks started discreetly unlocking and Sam kept Damion's attention on himself. The demon's grey eyes were cold, hard, and ready to kill.

Sam looked in the direction of the freed animals. They were still making their leave and the last few remaining men were struggling to keep the monsters away from them, waving their torches around in front of them as the larger animals tried to approach.

 _: How would you feed off these animals?_ Sam asked curiously.

"In hell, I am the strongest living creature, being born of hellfire. Other creatures suffer and their energy leaves them. I feed off what remains of them – that is, if they do not die."

Sam felt an aching pain in his chest. Several animals from other countries and continents had already been slaughtered and more than likely sent to hell for this demon's own desires.

"Your sister will not have to face such kismet if you trade yourself for her life."

"Natsumi," Sam spoke only to his sister, "break free of him. Bite him, breath fire, do something _._ "

"I never got my foxfire, Sa," Natsumi whined.

"You've gotten it, Sumi," Sam said, "you just haven't used it, yet. If no fire, bite him."

"Enough of this talk between you two," Damion snarled, pulling Natsumi out of Sam's sight, tired of the whining and low growling between them.

 _: No, enough of this,_ Sam snarled.

Seeing the pistol leave his sister's head gave Sam the opportunity to turn and throw a fireball at the center of the box, blasting a large hole in it. Sam hoped that whatever was within it would be able to break away parts to slip through and cause enough destruction or even kill Damion.

"No!" Damion shouted, holding the pistol to Natsumi's head again. "You stupid fox!"

However, before Damion could pull the trigger, Natsumi opened her mouth and bit down on the man's hand. Reflexively, the man let go and Natsumi fell to the ground and ran off.

Inside the box, something large began to move, the movement rumbling loudly through the box. The box creaked and sections cracked and broke as the large animal moved inside. Damion looked around briskly for Natsumi then focused on the box, backing up several feet away. Sam fell backwards as the large hole in the box seemed to explode as a large beast emerged, stretching up towards the ceiling. Lying on his back, Sam gaped up at the scaly, blue beast as it lowered its massive head and looked down at Sam, its breath blowing through his fur.

It was a Ryu – a Japanese dragon.

The Ryu tilted its head as it studied the small kitsune, its eyes narrowing. Its blue scales shimmered in the torch light.

"Uh – hello, sir," Sam said uneasily as the dragon breathed down on him, lowering itself to the ground. Two large paws landed on either side of Sam's head as the dragon continued to pull itself out of the box. Sam shook as the Ryu continued to stare him down, uneasy with the large beast known to eat kitsune. "I just freed you and all the other friends. That counts for something, right?"

The dragon was completely free from the box. It looked like a Chinese dragon without the whiskers. It was wingless, preferring the water than the sky, it's feet webbed, and had four legs. Its tail was long and whip like.

A loud bang rang through the room. The Ryu looked up and roared at Damion, whipping its tail out in the demon man's direction. Damion spun out of the way, avoiding the tail, before firing another poison bullet.

The great dragon lowered itself, as if it were covering Sam to protect him from the bullets, which had trouble penetrating the hard scales. The Ryu looked up and breathed a jet of flames at Damion. Damion tried to move out of the way, but the man ended up catching ablaze and the skin burned and charred. Damion fell to the ground.

The Ryu looked down at Sam.

"Um, thanks," Sam offered a smile, hoping the dragon decided not to eat him.

The Ryu just stared for a few seconds longer before closing its eyes and dipping its head in a bow posture. Sam rolled over and stood before bowing himself in a downward dog.

The Ryu rose to its feet, but before it could leave, a dark spirit figure flew out of Damion's body with a loud screech. It was ghost like, with an inhuman face, a demented figure with skeletal hands. It screeched again before flying to a corner of the room. Sam remembered Natsumi had run in that direction.

"Natsumi!" Sam cried, running after the figure.

Natsumi had hid in a corner of the warehouse behind several boxes. She saw the demon approach her and she screamed and tried to scurry away. The demon dove for her just as Sam jumped in front of her.

Sam breathed a flame of fire and the demon flew over them, flying above and around the warehouse before diving again. Sam tried to blast it with a large ball of fire, but he missed repeatedly. He breathed another jet of flames as the demon flew right above them.

Sam felt a bit of his energy disappear as the demon grazed his fur. He felt weaker, more tired, and less motivated to fight. He tried to shake the feeling away as he heard the demon screech and prepare to dive again. Sam felt his muscles shake, but he fought against it. He was sure that if the demon got too close a second time, Sam would lose all his energy and probably drop in exhaustion. The demon was feeding off him, but over his dead body would it feed off his sister.

The demon was approaching again and Sam prepared to breathe a jet of flames.

Then, the demon disappeared in the jaws of the Ryu. It happened so fast Sam had to stare at the Ryu and look around for the demon. The dragon had pounced with an open mouth and closed it on the demon, swallowing the hell-born creature whole. Akira had once told him that nothing could escape from the jaws of a Ryu or the stomach if one got there, yet Sam was not aware that demons qualified.

The Ryu looked down at Sam and Natsumi for a second before it turned away and began to leave the warehouse.

All that remained were the dead bodies of the many men that fought with the strange demon and the lonely shark circling in its aquarium.

Sam shrunk back to the size of a normal fox and quickly comforted his sister, wrapping his neck over hers. Natsumi cried into his fur, happy to be with family after fifty years.

"I've missed you," Natsumi said. "I thought you were all dead . . ."

"Hush," Sam said, rubbing his head along Natsumi's fur. "It's going to be okay. We are together, now."

Natsumi had never breathed a flame and Sam was sure she had never misted in her life. She would have to learn with time, but that would mean that they had a long journey home.

And that's exactly where Sam wanted to take her.

Home sweet home.

* * *

"Yay!" Harry clapped his hands at the end of Sam's tale. "I'm so happy you found Natsumi. Was she okay? Did she ever have nightmares after that? Was she happy to be home?"

 _: That is a story . . ._

"For another time, I know, I know," Harry pouted.

Severus smirked and ruffled his son's hair.

"Be respectful, son," Severus said.

 _: That demon was at last defeated, as were several of those hunters who lived to kill magical beasts. I am still grateful for that Ryu and what he did for my sister and me. I do wish to meet him again to properly thank him, but I fear he may not recognize me and attempt to eat me._

"Why did he help you?" Harry asked.

 _: Because I saved him,_ Sam answered, smiling, and flicking his ears.

"What happened to all the other creatures?"

 _: I'm assuming they all went home. I did run in with the weasel brothers again, but that was years later. They remembered me and helped me out at that time._

"Can you tell me the story now?"

"Be patient, son," Severus leaned over and kissed Harry's forehead. "I'm sure Sam will tell you more another time, but it's way past your bedtime. Go to sleep, now."

 _: Goodnight, Harry,_ Sam smiled.

"Goodnight, Dad. Goodnight, Sam." Harry said, snuggling into his blankets.

Severus turned out the lights and Sam followed Severus out, leaving to hunt.

* * *

Family reunion! I hope you enjoyed it!


	8. Healing Together

Sam's story continues. Thank you to those who've enjoyed this story.

* * *

Harry ran through Hogwarts halls away from Mr. Filch and his crazy cat, Mrs. Norris. He had been in the library and the bell had just rung for curfew. Harry should have been in his quarters anyway, he wasn't allowed to be out and about the castle so late at night unless he was with one of his uncles or his father. Harry turned sharply around a corner and paused, glancing over the corner to see that Filch was still following him, that blasted cat leading the way.

Harry continued running down the hall, trying to keep his footsteps quiet.

His father was busy proctoring a detention for a first-year Gryffindor that had dared to sabotage a Slytherin's cauldron during potions. Severus had not been pleased with the results of that disaster. Harry was sure Severus had the boy scrubbing cauldrons or extracting ink from squids. Whatever it was, the detention allowed Harry the opportunity to sneak out of his quarters and head to the library for a new book to read.

Harry had found a book about a wizard journeying around the world, fighting monstrous, magical beasts on land and sea. The wizard had to find the rare thunderbird that, after traveling to many countries, he believed lived somewhere hidden in North America. Harry had been prepared to turn the page and find out if the wizard was right when the bell had sounded. He quickly returned the book and ran out of the library.

He had lost track of time. To make matters worse, Mrs. Norris had spotted him and led Filch right to him. Filch, like all the professors, knew where Harry belonged at this time.

Harry had to get to back to his room before his father arrived. And when Filch came and spoke to Severus, Harry could say that the caretaker must have seen a student that looked like him. It might work, though Harry knew his father wasn't gullible.

Harry jumped down the stairs that led to the dungeons. He was so close.

He looked behind him as he turned a corner, seeing that Mrs. Norris nor Filch were close. Smirking, he looked forward and stopped in his tracks, his eyes widening.

Severus was standing outside their quarters, his hand on the doorknob ready to open the door. The man's eyes fell on Harry, and Severus crossed his arms as he glared down at his son.

Harry gulped. He heard a noise behind him and he glanced back to see Filch smirking with his cat sitting at his heels.

Severus exhaled angrily through his nose before opening the door and pointing inside.

"Get inside," he growled.

Harry quickly walked inside, turning his bottom away from his father as he did so. The door slammed shut behind him. Harry figured Severus was talking to Filch.

Harry sat down on the couch, crossing his arms angrily. Filch was probably telling Severus all the wrong details. In a childish fit of anger, Harry stuck his tongue out at the door.

"Put that away!" Severus snapped as he entered the rooms. Harry quickly pulled back his tongue and blushed.

"I didn't do that to you," Harry defended.

"You better not do it to anyone," Severus said. He came and sat next to Harry on the couch. "I thought I told you to stay in your room while I was gone for the hour. Do I need to have your uncles babysit you? Maybe I should ask Sam. Clearly I can't trust you to stay in the rooms alone after all."

"No, Dad, you can," Harry whined. He had practically begged his father to give him a chance at staying in the quarters alone while Severus proctored a detention.

When Harry was younger, Severus could leave him in the rooms because of the child safety locks on all the doors. When Harry was nine, he promised his father he would listen and follow the rules so all the spells were removed. The doors were now only locked to everyone but Harry and his father.

"What were you doing running through the halls?" Severus demanded. "And don't even think about lying to me."

"I was at the library," Harry answered. "I was just reading."

"I told you earlier that you could go to the library tomorrow," Severus said. "You couldn't wait one night?"

"I just wanted to find a new book," Harry said, looking down at his shoes, swinging them slightly since they didn't touch the floor.

"Harry," Severus grabbed his son's chin so the boy was looking at him. "I told you no earlier. I told you we could go to the library tomorrow since its Saturday. And I've told you a thousand times before to stay in these rooms when I am not here, especially when it's nearing curfew. You left these quarters, anyway."

"I'm sorry," Harry said.

"Go get ready for bed," Severus commanded, releasing Harry's chin.

Harry's face fell. He knew what that command meant. Harry felt tears in his eyes as he stood and went to his room, changing into his pajamas. He didn't like how thin they felt on him. Harry brushed his teeth and debated if he really wanted to call his father or not. He knew he was supposed to once he was ready for bed, but he didn't want to start his punishment. As Harry thought about it, he figured delaying it wouldn't help.

"Dad," Harry called, stepping out of his room.

Severus was sitting at the dining table with a cup of tea. He raised an eyebrow at his son. Harry scuffed his sock covered feet as he stared at them.

"I'm ready," he said.

* * *

Harry played absently with a button on his father's robes as he sat on Severus's lap. He sniffed as he rubbed at his eyes briefly before fiddling with the button again. His bottom still stung from the ten swats his father had given him over his pajamas which did little to cushion the blows. Harry rested his head on his father's shoulder. Severus gently smoothed down his hair.

"I'm sorry," Harry said for the umpteenth time.

"I know," Severus said, "and you are forgiven. Next time stay where you belong."

Harry rubbed at his cheeks and looked at the button he was playing with. He realized he had pulled at the thread that attached the button to the robes. It now hung by its thread.

"Sorry," Harry said, pulling his hands away. Severus looked down at his robes.

"It's fixable. Let's get you in bed now."

Harry allowed Severus to lay him down in his bed and cover him.

 _: Having a bad day, are we?_

Harry looked down and saw Sam at the end of his bed, the size of a normal fox, sitting with his tails curled around him.

"Someone decided to have a late-night adventure," Severus informed the fox.

 _: I see,_ Sam tilted his head at Harry, whose cheeks turned red.

"I've been good most of the day," Harry said. "Technically, I've been good all day. Like you said, it was a late-night adventure."

"Cheeky," Severus warned, "It's still early enough to hand out another dose of discipline."

Harry's entire face burned red and he looked down, softly saying, "sorry."

 _: How about a story to brighten the mood?_ Sam suggested, flicking his ears. _Shall we end this day on a happier note?_

Harry smiled and nodded his head. Severus opened his mouth, ready to protest.

"Please, Dad?" Harry pouted up t him. "I want to hear Sam's story. I promise to go right to sleep after."

"Fine," Severus sighed. "Make it a quick one Sam."

Severus turned to leave.

"Stay and listen with me!" Harry called to his father, moving over on his bed.

"Harry, I have work to do."

Harry merely pouted, giving his father his saddest face, widening his green eyes and letting his lower lip stick out a bit. Severus sighed and walked back over to the bed, lying next to his son on the covers.

"Happy?" Severus questioned. Harry nodded with a smile, wrapping his arms around Severus's arm and snuggling into his father's shoulder.

 _: Well,_ Sam began, lying down himself at the end of the bed, _now that we are all comfortable, I believe I left off after I had rescued my sister. We started a long walk back home since she had no idea how to mist. It would take a couple days for there were miles ahead of us. I tried to keep conversation going between us or Natsumi would grow very quiet . . ._

* * *

"Are you sure you're alright?" Sam asked as he walked next to his sister.

They had just left the large white warehouse and were beginning the long journey home. Sam felt upset that he couldn't free the shark. It would slowly starve to death but he couldn't worry about the creature. Water was too far away for Sam to use his mind and he was still learning mind magic.

Natsumi walked slightly crouched to the ground, her head lowered and her body as close to Sam's as she could get. They were both the size of normal foxes since Natsumi didn't know how to change shape.

"I'm alright," Natsumi said, glancing up at the slightly larger fox.

"So," Sam thought about what to talk about. He couldn't ask her how she had been. He had a horrible feeling that he knew. He couldn't ask her what she did in her spare time. She probably had never been outside a cage since the day she was taken.

"I, uh," Sam fought with his words for a moment. "I – we – are going back home. The den near the river in the mountains. Remember? I've added my own touches to the place – a beautiful garden, for instance. You'll love it."

"Mountains?" Natsumi looked at Sam questioningly. "River?"

Sam watched Natsumi struggle to remember.

"Home? Where we were born?" She finally asked.

"Yes, yes, home!" Sam barked happily. "We're going home."

"You stayed there?" Natsumi asked. "After everything that happened."

"Otousan told me that the only reason hunters would ever return was if that demon was still alive. He's gone, now, along with several of those hunters. We should be safe."

"Otousan?" Natsumi tilted her head.

"He was alive," Sam looked down as he walked forward. "He was wounded, mostly by a poisoned bullet, but he was alive. For – I don't know – three weeks? But he would have been so happy to know that you were alive. He tried to go after you when you were calling for him. He really did. But he couldn't keep up."

"I thought everyone was dead," Natsumi said. "I thought I was alone. I'm so happy I have you, now." Natsumi rubbed her head against Sam's shoulder.

"I thought the same things," Sam said, lowering his head to rub Natsumi's. "I'm happy I have you now, too."

They came upon a small opening in the trees. Sam sniffed around while Natsumi sat and watched him. Sam found broken branches, thick shrubs, and several large sticks. He quickly constructed a tipi like den for he and his sister.

"What do you think?" Sam asked Natsumi.

Natsumi slinked forward, still walking with that stoop, and she sniffed at the makeshift den before darting inside and curling up in the back corner, the white tip of her tail covering her nose.

"Um, make yourself at home," Sam said before turning and walking back to the trees.

"Wait!"

Sam spun and looked at his sister, who was now standing and peeking out of the little tipi.

"Where are you going?" Natsumi asked.

"Hunting," Sam answered.

"Now?"

"Well, yeah, I mean, I'm a little hungry," Sam felt his stomach growl. After the long trip to the warehouse and the long night he had had, he was hoping for a quick bite to eat before the sun came up. Something easy to catch since he was a too tired to put up much of a fight.

"Oh," Natsumi looked around at the surrounding trees, but stayed under the shelter. "But it's dark."

"We are nocturnal," Sam said, flicking his tail a bit.

"Of course, we are. I will, umm, I may – uh . . ."

"Do you want to come with me?" Sam asked, sensing his sister's uneasiness and fear.

"Yes!" Natsumi bolted forward until she stood next to Sam. "I mean, I would like to, if that's alright."

"It's fine," Sam started for the trees with his sister at his side.

After a ten-minute search, Sam spotted a little cottontail. Natsumi eyed it as well.

"I haven't had rabbit in so long," Natsumi said, her legs shaking under her. She sat down.

"What did you eat?" Sam asked, keeping his eye on the bunny. He wasn't up for chasing the quick creatures, but perhaps Natsumi could help.

"Scraps mostly. Little bits of chicken and bones."

"Well, how about we ambush the rabbit?"

"We?" Natsumi looked at Sam. "As in both of us?"

"Well, yeah. Two's better than one, right?" Sam said, nudging her shoulder playfully.

"I – I guess," Natsumi said, wrapping her tail around her.

Sam sighed. They were words his sister once said with high confidence and pride.

"Just wait here," Sam said, pawing at the ground where he wanted his sister to stay. "And when I drive the rabbit this way, pounce on it."

"Stay here?" Natsumi sounded unsure of the idea. "You're coming back?"

"Always," Sam promised. "Now remember, I bring the rabbit your way, you pounce."

"Okay," Natsumi said, crouching low where Sam had pawed, ready to pounce.

Sam left his sister and circled the cottontail that continued to use its paws to clean itself. Sam lowered himself in the tall weeds and stalked forward quietly. He then charged and drove the rabbit in his sister's direction. The cottontail tried to dive into a hole in the ground, but Sam dove at the hole and forced the rabbit to keep running.

"Now, Natsumi!" Sam called to his sister as they neared.

The rabbit kept running to the trees with no interference. No fox jumped out from the trees. He was going to lose the rabbit.

"Natsumi!" Sam called again. He stopped in front of the shrubs where he had left his sister. The rabbit was long gone.

"Natsumi," Sam crawled through the shrubs and found his sister in the exact same position he had left her in. "What happened? You were supposed to pounce."

"I don't know, I kind of just froze," Natsumi sat up and backed up a bit. "I'm sorry, we lost it, didn't we?"

"It's fine," Sam said, looking in the direction that rabbit had run. He could hear a small creek nearby. He smiled and leaped towards the trees a bit before dropping down in a downward dog. "I know! How about we fish? You were the best at that."

"I've only done it once, Sa," Natsumi said, bringing a paw up to her chest. "It was beginner's luck."

"Come, now," Sam said walking back up to his sister, "you can do it!"

"I think I'd rather go back to the tipi now, Samuru," Natsumi said.

Sam sighed. So much for eating that night. He could wait on a meal.

"Alright, we'll head back." Sam led the way back to the tipi.

Natsumi bolted inside once more and curled up into a ball. Sam laid next to her and rested his head on her back.

For two nights and days, the foxes traveled nonstop back to their home den. Sam fished and caught a few squirrels to keep them fed and going. Natsumi ate little of what he caught, haven grown used to little food. They didn't speak much to each other, just stayed at the other's side for comfort and warmth.

As they finally neared their home, one question kept eating at Sam's insides.

"Natsumi, how did you end up in his hands?" Sam was sure Natsumi knew who he meant.

"Well," Natsumi looked at the ground as she walked next to Sam. "I crawled out of the escape tunnel. I ran for the den. A – a, umm, a dog chased me and I jumped into the nearest hole in the ground. The dog started digging and barking, so I started digging as fast as I could. I finally made a hole big enough to crawl out of and I ran while the dog was distracted. But a man saw me and whistled and the dog chased me again and the man fired arrows at me. I hid under a tree trunk until the man and dog passed. Then I ran for the river. I – I don't really know what happened, but I was hanging in a tree. I tried to reach for the ground and bite at the – the, uh, the rope. But a – he – the demon thing, he grabbed my scruff and cut me loose. And that's when I started calling for help. For Otousan, Okaasan, you. No one came. I tried to bite, but – but he had me too tightly and he threw me in a – a, uhh, cage. And then a gas filled it and I fell asleep."

"And you've lived in that cage since?"

"No, he put me in a bigger one later. Used a rope around my neck and someone tied one around my muzzle and they moved me into a bigger cage."

"Did they ever hurt you?"

"Every day," Natsumi admitted. Sam felt his heart clench at her answer. "Long, thin ropes would lash at me and the demon would demand that I do . . . something. He said breathe or disappear or other things. I never could. They'd starve me after such days. Sometimes they'd tie me up so I couldn't move my legs or open my mouth and they'd put me just out of reach of another monster they had. I think he was hoping fear would make me do something."

Sam felt anger at everything that had happened to his sister. The hunters had paid their dues, however, including the demon.

They arrived to the clearing where the den was and Natsumi froze.

Sam stood next to her and allowed her to take in the sight. After a minute, Natsumi slowly walked into the clearing and sniffed around. It looked exactly the way it had before the fateful day. Natsumi walked over to the headstone and looked at the names on all the sides and at the flowers growing around it. She rested her head against the cold stone as Sam came to stand next to her. He curled his neck around hers.

"My name is on here," Natsumi said softly.

"I really thought you were gone," Sam said, nuzzling her softly. "I'll remove it, later."

Sam was too tired to try and perform any fox magic now.

"You've taken such good care of home," Natsumi told him, nuzzling into Sam's chest.

"And I'll take good care of you," Sam said. "I promise."

For several weeks, Natsumi struggled with adjusting to life with freedom. Sam stopped going to the city and focused on daily fox routines to help his sister adapt. Natsumi followed Sam everywhere, hunting, fishing, cleaning out the den, and tending to the garden. Natsumi tried to help with what she could, but she had yet to breathe a flame, catch a fish, or hunt, and she tired quickly from the constant moving around.

Sam observed his sister carefully. She was skittish at night, fearing shadows that sneaked up on her, running immediately to her brother's side. She always slept in a corner, curled up with the tip of her tail covering her nose. She bolted into whatever shelter was offered, craving the need to hide. She ate little, though her meals had slowly been growing larger each day, if only by a bite.

Sam also noted that she tended to shake a lot. She also suffered with night terrors. Sam comforted her after each one. Natsumi had sought Sam out the first night back when Sam had her sleep in her old section after fixing it up for her. Natsumi ended up in his section, curled up next to him. They continued to sleep with each other and it did make it easier to help his sister through her terrors when she suffered them. He was near and he was there for her.

Sam did start to notice some improvement with Natsumi after a few months had gone by. She ate an almost normal sized meal and started venturing from his side more. She gathered water from the river in her mouth and watered the garden Sam had made. It took a lot of trips, but Sam notice that the walking was helping her rebuild some muscle tone.

Natsumi fixed up the den herself when Sam was out hunting, adding more grass and leaves to soften the ground. She still slept in Sam's section, but she would take naps without his presence every now and then. She still had that way of walking as well, low to the ground and submissive.

One day, Natsumi followed Sam to the river and looked down at the swimming fish.

Sam watched her closely. She walked to the bank alone while he sat back in the trees more. Natsumi looked down in the water, then dove her head in. After a second she pulled out and shook her head to clear her mouth of water before watching the fish and diving her head back into the water. Again. And again. And again.

Sam sighed and stepped forward to help her. Natsumi looked frustrated, her lips were pulled back and her ears were flat against her head.

"Natsumi," Sam called her attention.

Natsumi looked up at him, her ears dropping to the sides more and her shoulders hunched a bit. Sam crouched next to her, looking in the water.

"Let the fish swim right up to you," Sam said. "Let them become used to your presence and swim relaxed in the water. Then, quickly snatch it."

After several moments, fish started piling right in front of them, calmly swimming in the area. Natsumi dove her head in the water, but came back up empty mouthed. Sam nudged her encouragingly and she tried again. Sam never left her side in all her attempts. After several more tries, she finally caught her first fish in fifty years.

"I did it," Natsumi whispered to herself, staring at the small fish she had dropped at her feet. "I caught one. Sa, did you see me? I caught one! I actually caught one!"

Sam smiled at her proudly, happy to see this side of Natsumi. She was healing, slowly, but healing.

It wasn't long before it only took Natsumi a few tries to catch a fish. Sam began teaching her how to hunt, remembering all the tips Otousan had given him. After four weeks of lessons, Natsumi caught her first kill – a squirrel.

She proudly brought back the rodent and dropped it at Sam's feet, her smile like the ones she always had on her face as a kit.

Her fox magic slowly developed more. She had discovered that if she touched a wilting flower, it would lift itself and bloom more. It was a special fox magic Sam was sure he didn't have. Natsumi had more earth magic, while his were more illusion based. Natsumi managed to mist and flew a brief distance before solidifying back. It took a lot of energy, but with more time, she would be able to mist and travel long distances.

The only thing Natsumi had yet to do was breathe a flame.

"Do you think I've lost it?" Natsumi asked Sam one day as they napped in the sun.

"Lost what, Sumi?"

"My foxfire. Do you think it's gone? That I may never breathe a flame?"

"No, I don't think that at all. You just need time to heal a bit more. Breathing fire takes a lot out of you the first few times. I always felt like I was being choked to death. You'll get it."

"When? It's way past the time I should have gotten it? How will I ever protect myself?"

"I'm sure you're very close to breathing your first. And until then, I'll protect you."

"What if something happens to you?" Natsumi nuzzled Sam's muzzle. "I don't want to lose you."

"I'll be here, Sumi, I'll always be. I'm never losing you again."

"I dream that you disappear. All those nightmares. Losing our family, living with humans. You always die in the end. I feel so lost and alone sometimes."

"I'm here for you."

"But you weren't before," Natsumi looked away. "No one was. There were so many nights I wished a painless death upon myself – if only to join family in peaceful rest. I needed you during those times, but you were never there."

"I'm here now," Sam said, watching his sister fight with her emotions. "I promised our parents that I would keep you safe and take care of you. Always and forever."

"Well, you didn't do a very good job the first time now, did you?" Natsumi snapped at him, her eyes glassy from unshed tears.

Sam felt tears sting his own eyes and he recoiled as if he had been bit. He lowered his head, his eyes closing and his ears dropping. She was right. He hadn't done a good job the first time. Why would he do any better.

"I'm sorry, Sa," Natsumi nuzzled him. "I'm so sorry, there was nothing you could've done. I've been so afraid half my life, I never dreamed I'd ever see you again. I really thought you were dead."

"My family's demise was not my fault," Sam whispered, his eyes still closed.

"What?" Natsumi looked at him shocked. "Of course, not, you don't actually believe that it was, do you?"

"Otousan told me to say it until I believed it," Sam informed her.

"And you've been saying it all these years? Oh, Sa," Natsumi nosed her head under Sam's. "While I've been suffering fear and depression, all these years, you've been suffering the same, but with guilt as well. What could you have done, we were all kits. Our parents tried to protect us because we were defenseless."

The two foxes stayed in each other's embrace, comforted by the warmth and security they felt. They would need each other to heal completely. They both had their demons to battle, their challenges to face, and their nightmares to conquer.

Two weeks later, Sam and Natsumi were hunting together, Natsumi slowly mastering the skill. Sam was stalking a rabbit and his plan was to chase it towards Natsumi where she would ambush the dog. The gray and black rabbit looked up and seemed to stare right at Sam. It was now or never.

Sam charged at the creature. The bunny ran at the sight of the fox. It ran towards a bush. The bush suddenly shook startling the rabbit and Sam. The rabbit bolted away, leaving Sam to stare curiously at the bush.

Sam looked at the large shrub bush. A large beast stood on two legs and looked at Sam. It was a bear. The bear let out a roar and swiped at the fox, knocking him down.

Before Sam could stand, the bear had him pinned to the ground and it let out another roar as it smashed Sam's head into the ground.

"Samuru!" Natsumi called to him.

Sam wished his tail could ignite in flames. Perhaps he could mist . . . no, too much pain was being applied and he needed to be able to focus to mist. Sam tried to open his mouth to let out a jet of flames, but the bear was crushing his head too much, making it hard to open his jaws the slightest bit. Sam struggled and squirmed under the pressure.

Then, fire licked his fur, the heat searing hot, and the bear let off and stood to face Natsumi.

Sam looked at his sister, who looked shocked, panting and her eyes were wide. Sam looked at the bear and breathed a flame himself, sending the bear away.

Sam looked at Natsumi.

"My first flame," she whispered. A large, wide foxy smile took over her face. "My first flame!"

Natsumi ran to Sam and jumped on him, causing them both to fall and tumble a bit. Natsumi nuzzled her brother. Sam returned the nuzzle and gave his sister a gentle lick on the cheek. They were going to be just fine together.

After finally catching a rabbit and each fox eating a good-sized meal, the two retired for the night in Sam's section of the underground den. Natsumi in her usual corner curled up with her tail to her nose and Sam right alongside her.

* * *

 _: Natsumi was happy to have her first flame and from then on, her spirit lifted more each day and she grew more confident as time went on._

"Did she stop having nightmare?" Harry asked.

 _: I'm afraid not,_ Sam answered with a sad smile. _We both still suffer nightmares occasionally. But we did learn to face them together. She grew stronger each day, turning back into the Natsumi I once knew._

"I'm happy for you, Sam," Harry yawned. "I'm glad you and your sister have each other."

"As am I," Severus said, standing from the bed and kissing Harry goodnight. "Sweet dreams, son."

Harry quickly fell asleep.

Severus and Sam retreated to the living room. Severus prepared to grade third-year essays.

 _: I shall leave you to your work,_ Sam said, turning away to mist. Severus gave the fox a curious look.

"How would you feel about having a partner to hunt with?" Severus asked.

 _: Are you offering?_ Sam tilted his head at Severus, his three tails flicking curiously.

"If you don't mind. I'm really not up for grading essays on a Friday night."

With that said, Severus shifted into Freyr, the large tiger animagus, and he followed Sam to the Forbidden Forest to try and take down something other than rabbit, as Sam had gotten quite sick of eating.

* * *

I hope you enjoyed this chapter!


	9. To Stay or Not to Stay

Here is the next chapter! Enjoy!

* * *

"What is fox magic?" Harry asked as he sat on his bed, watching Sam jump up to join them. He wanted to get right into the story. Since his father decided that Harry had already gotten his fair share of reading at the library last night, Harry had not been allowed to go get a new book. He was hoping Sam's story would help tame his need for a good book.

 _: Fox magic varies in each fox. It'd take me forever to explain everything. All foxes are capable of illusions, especially mind illusions, but some foxes have other mind magic and shadow tricks they can use. My ability to choose who hears me is one of them, as well as being able to read thoughts, no matter how far away I am. I can also play with shadows. Few foxes have such gifts._

"What do you mean play with shadows?"

Sam looked at the wall, where Harry's small lantern light allowed different objects of the room to cast shadows. Sam stared intently at the shadow of Harry's nightstand. Harry looked at it as well, waiting for whatever was about to happen.

Suddenly, the shadow left its castor and moved up the wall, morphing into a dragon that stopped eyelevel with Harry. It opened its mouth, its tongue tasting the air before releasing a loud roar that made Harry jump. The shadow returned to its castor, becoming lifeless.

 _: I didn't mean to scare you,_ Sam said, tilting his head, his ears flicking.

"That's okay," Harry looked back at the nightstand. "That was cool."

 _: I'm sure it was. It used to amuse me when I was a kit and Otousan played with shadows to tell his stories._

"What about foxfire?"

 _: All foxes have control of foxfire, though mainly it's just breathing a flame, spitting a ball, and our tail tips igniting._

"I've seen you do all those."

 _: But you haven't seen me do everything,_ Sam smirked. _I have discovered that I am gifted in fire magic as well as shadow magic. Which allows me to create walls of fire, fire orbs, and more._

"What's a wall of fire?"

 _: Something dangerous I cannot show you. But I can make you an orb._

Sam backed up and began gagging like a cat ready to spew a hairball. Smoke seemed to come out of Sam's nose, as it often did when Sam had fire in his mouth. Harry made a disgusted face as Sam opened his mouth and gagged out a large, round orb with fire dancing inside. It looked slimy to the touch.

"Ew!" Harry exclaimed. "That's gross!"

Sam touched his nose to the surface and the slimy covering hardened. Sam nudged it and it floated over to Harry. Sam breathed heavily through his nose to put out the lantern light in Harry's room. The orb allowed enough yellowish light to chase away any shadows. Harry grabbed the orb, surprised that it didn't feel wet and gross. It was smooth and warm to the touch.

"This is cool," Harry smiled. "Gross. But cool."

 _: I'm sure._

"What else can you do?"

 _: That is as far as my magic extends, fire, mind, and shadows. Well, there's one more, but I'm not explaining that one to you. However, my sister was great with earth magic and she explored hers every day . . ._

* * *

"Samuru!" Natsumi ran over to Sam, scaring away the large trout he had been trying to catch.

Sam sighed. He had spent nearly half an hour trying to lure the trout to the surface. It was huge, probably ten or eleven pounds. He had found a nice, plump, juicy worm and had been holding it against a rock in the water with his paw, making sure it could still wiggle around for the trout to see. It had been so close to taking a nibble.

"Oh, I'm sorry," Natsumi said, watching her brother release the worm in the water for whatever fish may attack it. She lowered herself slightly, hunching her shoulders. "Were you busy?"

"Not anymore," Sam smiled at his sister's apologetic, worried face. "It's fine, Sumi. What is it that you wanted?"

"Oh," Natsumi stood straighter as she smiled at Sam. "Come look! Come look!"

Natsumi ran through the forest and Sam ran after her, trying to keep up with the smaller, swift fox. They stopped in front of a dying tree, it's white branches and wilting brown leaves giving away its old, dying status.

Sam watched as Natsumi stepped forward and lifted her head up more, breathing heavy through her nose slowly on the trunk of the tree. The white bark on the tree cracked and fell to the ground as healthy brown bark took over. The leaves lifted themselves, a healthy green color rushing over them.

"That's incredible," Sam said. "Just like Okaasan."

Natsumi beamed at Sam with a wide foxy smile.

"And watch this!"

Natsumi ignited her tail, now that they both had tail foxfire, they used it often. She burned a small patch of grass beneath her. She shook out her tail and then pawed softly at the earth. The burnt patch grew back with fresh, green grass.

Natsumi smiled again.

Sam smiled back, remembering how their mother had been gifted with earth magic. Her skills were very advanced and her knowledge of the trees, grasses and flowers allowed her to find natural cures and remedies for her family if any of her kits were sick. Or even if Otousan was sick, though it was more of a fight for her to get the stubborn five-tails to eat mint leaves or a ginger root.

"What are you thinking?" Natsumi asked, tilting her head at her brother who had gone quiet.

"Just remembering," Sam said. "It really is amazing having that gift. I could never do that. And despite all of Okaasan's lessons, I don't remember half of what she said about different plants."

"That's what you have me for," Natsumi smirked, her black lips curling.

"I guess so," Sam chuckled.

Sam nuzzled Natsumi before turning to go back fishing. Natsumi leaped after him, hoping to discover more of her own magic.

"Okaasan had earth magic," Natsumi said. "What exactly did Otousan have?"

"I believe he had fire," Sam thought back to what he had seen Akira do. "He had a lot of mind control and was great with illusions. I think he has some spirit magic, but I'm not sure. Those dreams I had could just be coincidence, but if he had spirit magic, it would make sense. He could also do the shadow trick I showed you. Remember when he would tell us stories?"

When Akira told stories to his four kits, he would use the shadows created by the moon and manipulate them into characters. Akira's stories were always something else, usually about some kind of adventure Akira had been on before he met Mai. But they were always exaggerated whenever danger was involved and Mai constantly scolded Akira for being dramatic. Sam enjoyed his father's stories.

"I remember," Natsumi smiled, "they're like the ones you tell now."

"Pardon me?" Sam paused mid-step, tilting an ear at Natsumi.

"Oh, come now," Natsumi smirked, trotting smugly around Sam. Sam just watched her. "Your stories about fighting with humans in the city, fighting bears for food, and all that."

"They are true," Sam insisted.

"Yes, but last I knew, bears aren't seven feet tall in Japan," Natsumi sat in front of Sam and smirked at him.

"Well, that one looked it," Sam huffed indignantly. "Besides, you weren't there."

Sam started moving again towards the river, trotting around his sister, who stood and pranced at his side.

"I was for the warehouse adventure," she said. "I did see what you were doing, and to be honest, I think you allowed the other animals to do all the dirty work. You hardly lifted a paw to fight the humans."

"I was a little busy trying to free everyone."

"Yes, that I saw," Natsumi said. "And you should be grateful that Ryu didn't eat you. We should go find that dragon and properly thank him for his heroic actions. It'll be like an adventure!"

"And risk getting eaten," Sam put plainly.

"I'll take that risk," Natsumi said. "I heard a lot of what the humans said when they first brought that dragon to the warehouse. Did you know it's near impossible to escape the stomach of a dragon? Swords are incapable of penetrating the thick walls of the stomach. And us? We'd never mist out of it, not unless we could escape through the mouth. And a lot of ryus have a lockjaw ability . . ."

Sam allowed Natsumi to talk as they approached the river. Though he had enjoyed his time in quiet and solitude before rescuing Natsumi, he enjoyed hearing her talk as she healed enough to share what she had learned in life thus far, even if from her captors.

"I think it would be fun," Natsumi finally ended with. "We should leave home and go on some crazy journey. Besides, how else will we find our mates for life?"

"Do you have any idea how few kitsune there are?" Sam asked her as he sat at the bank. "Besides, we are native to Japan, and unless every kitsune went on some 'crazy journey' around the world, we would have to look around here for mates."

"But why would kitsune stay in a land where they are being slaughtered? It makes perfect sense to leave here, even if we are natives."

"No, it makes sense to stay and to stay hidden," Sam insisted.

He really didn't want to have this talk with Natsumi again. Though it had been over eighty years since he had rescued her, Natsumi was showing more and more cravings for adventure and exploring. Sam had set limits for her to remain in the forest, though he knew she wouldn't go far without him. However, Natsumi wanted to leave their homeland, the safety of their den, to go and explore as their parents had before they met.

And the only thing keeping her around was him. She wouldn't leave unless Sam went with her. Sam knew that her confidence would never be a hundred percent like it was when she was a kit. And secretly, Sam was glad for that. He hated to think that way, but he didn't want Natsumi out and about the dangerous world on her own. He had to shelter her from the humans that would kill her in an instant, misjudging her for some evil spirit.

"Stay hidden?" Natsumi snarled. "You're going to tell me to stay hidden when you run off to a human city all the time! How is that fair?"

"I visit the cities for a reason," Sam snarled back. "And I keep my identity hidden while I'm there as well. Why are you so desperate to leave home? What does the world have to offer?"

"Everything! Everything other than this! Something different from hiding, from running, from staying in the shadows. I want to get out of the dark, Samuru!"

"So you can what? Go on those adventures like the ones our parents went on? Find your mate? The world isn't what it was for them, anymore! It's changed. It's darker, more dangerous, and a lot less forgiving than it used to be. We are better off where its familiar and safe."

"What are you so afraid of? What do you have against leaving this forest? Leaving Japan? You'd think that after everything that's happened here, you'd be more willing to leave!"

"And you'd think that after leaving with humans in a cage, you'd understand why we can't!"

Natsumi glared at Sam, but she was silent. Her eyes began to glisten with unshed tears as she stared up at the larger fox. Sam returned the stare, his eyes narrowing as he showed her he would not relent. He had to be the dominate fox, the one in charge. He couldn't allow her to risk her safety with some silly, pointless adventure.

Finally, Natsumi pushed past him and ran back towards the den. Sam sighed as he watched her go, his ears falling to the sides. He hated himself for being so stern with Natsumi, but he had a job and that was to keep her safe. He wasn't going to lose his sister anytime soon, not if he could help it.

* * *

"What was wrong with exploring?" Harry asked, still holding the glowing orb.

 _: When I was that age, everything was wrong with it. Going off and enjoying life was just too risky at the time. I was determined to keep my sister alive and well, even if she hated me for it. I do admit that I was being a little overprotective._

"Sounds like my dad," Harry smirked, rolling the orb around in his hands.

"Excuse me?" A deep voice said at the doorway. Harry and Sam both looked at Severus. The man stood in the doorway, his arms crossed and a smirk on his face.

"Just comparing you to Sam," Harry smiled innocently. "You should take it as a compliment."

"Overprotective, hmm?" Severus approached Harry's bed, noticing the unlit lantern and the strange, bright orb in his son's arms. He reached for it. "What's this?"

"Something Sam coughed up," Harry explained.

"What?" Severus snatched his hand back before he touched it. Severus looked at Sam, disgust clear in his face. Sam laughed, a cough-like sound.

 _: It's touchable. Smooth, actually. A fire orb._

"Here, Dad," Harry held it up to his father. "It's warm."

Severus raised an eyebrow at Sam but he did lay a hand on the orb. Harry let it go and Severus had to grab it before it floated to the ceiling. Severus peered into it and he could see fire dancing around inside. It was a strange thing and large in Severus's opinion. He wondered how the fox had coughed it up.

"Brilliant, isn't it?" Harry smiled.

"In both definitions of that word, yes, it's very brilliant."

"Sam said it's fire magic. He can do that and play with shadows, and illusions and something else but he won't tell me."

"Is that so?" Severus said. "I came in to say goodnight, but you're not even under the covers."

Harry quickly crawled under his blanket and leaned back into his pillow, smiling at his father. Severus handed the orb back to Harry, running a hand through Harry's hair.

"Can you make him tell me what other magic he can do?" Harry demanded. Sam laughed again and Severus smiled.

"Let me ask," Severus smirked. "Sam, what is it you're keeping from Harry?"

 _: If you'd like me to explain how seduction magic works, I'll gladly oblige,_ Sam said only to Severus. _My sister had that magic as well, as do many kitsune, I believe. I'm pretty good at charming the ladies if I don't so say myself._

Severus laughed as he pinched the bridge of his nose. Sam gave a wide foxy smile. Harry frowned, unhappy to not be in on whatever the joke was.

"Well?" Harry demanded. "What's so funny? Why can't he tell me?"

"When you're older, Harry," Severus said, leaning down and kissing the pouting boy's forehead. Severus smirked at the unhappy face and stroked Harry's cheek with a thumb. "Goodnight, son. Just another ten minutes, Sam."

 _: Understood._ Sam watched Severus leave the room before he looked at Harry. _Anything else you'd like to hear?_

"Why did you start going back to the city?" Harry asked. "I thought you weren't going to do that now that you had to take care of Natsumi."

 _: The world was changing, as it constantly is. I wanted to be up-to-date with the latest styles of combat and weaponry. So, I would go and explore and learn. And sometimes steal when I could._

"Did Natsumi ever go with you?"

 _: The one time she did was the last. It was a few years after our argument, I was a couple years away from growing my second tail . . ._

* * *

"Is there a reason we're going into the city?" Natsumi asked as she crouched beside Sam in the bushes.

"I told you," Sam watched a few men exchange pigs with coins, "I need a few things. And I need to keep my skills fresh."

"Skills, huh?" Natsumi sneezed. She looked back through the forest behind her. "Wouldn't it just be better if we stayed in the forest out of human sight?"

"We will stay out of sight," Sam said. "Understanding humans will help us better protect ourselves. Besides, I like to have a little fun. I told you – you didn't have to come but you insisted. I thought you wanted a little adventure?"

"Not in a human city," Natsumi defended, looking at Sam. "I just wanted to see what you find so fun about this place. That's all."

"Oh, you'll see alright," Sam eyed a horse pulling a cart full of hay that was coming their way. He wanted to show Natsumi all the unique food and treasures one could find in the city after he did what he needed. Humans had a strange way of mixing and combing food - it was delicious. "See that cart? When I say 'now,' run out and jump in the hay. That will take us right inside."

"I don't know, Samuru . . ."

"Now!" Sam leaped out of the shrubs and ran after the passing cart before jumping in to the soft, fresh hay. He poked his head out to see if Natsumi had followed when a weight landed on him and pushed him back into the hay. He shook Natsumi off him.

"Sorry," Natsumi apologized.

"That's alright," Sam said. "I'm just happy you're braving the human nest."

"I'd rather be a thousand miles away from the human nest."

"Don't worry," Sam said, crawling through the hay and peering over the side of the cart. "I'll make this quick."

"You know, when I said explore and adventure, I was hoping to go where there weren't humans."

"That'll be harder than you think."

Sam watched as they neared the city. The human leading the horse stopped in a busy street full of people selling and exchanging. It seemed busier than normal.

Sam leaped out of the hay, Natsumi right behind him, and crawled down an empty alley. The city was slowly developing and changing. It was odd seeing the familiar become unfamiliar. But the change in the city and its peoples' customs meant a change in weaponry and fighting style. Sam had to have the best weapons he could and learn how to manipulate them. It was the only way to stay safe.

Sam found a shop full of weapons. They were more of these odd things now – long, rod like things with a triangular end. A rifle, he heard it was called. He had seen strange things such as it before, such as with hunters and that demon, but they were not in the numbers they were now. They were smaller, for the most part, and needed some kind of spark to make them roar. There was little use for the fire spitting weapons, but now, these newer models seemed to be very important.

Sam studied the hanging weapons through a window, Natsumi still in the alley. He wondered how easy it would be to snatch one with a bit of shadows and illusions. He'd figure out how it worked later. It couldn't be too hard. It looked similar enough to the other ones he's stolen.

A yelp startled Sam out of his thoughts. He jumped down from the window and looked down the alley to see an older man and a donkey standing over his sister. The donkey was strapped to a cart of weird things – cages of chickens, clothes, woven blankets, old clocks, and other knick-knacks. An Akita-dog sat in the cart looking down at Natsumi, but he didn't move or jump at her.

The man must have stepped on Natsumi since his sister was busy licking her tail, though she kept her eyes on the human. Sam would have to teach her to be warier of her surroundings.

The older man reached a hand down towards Natsumi, who immediately stopped tending to her tail and froze, flattening herself against the ground, her ears flat on her head. Sam snarled as he rushed forward to stop the man.

He was too late! The man's hand made contact with Natsumi and Sam watched surprised as the human ran his hand down her back, stroking the fur. Sam slowed his approach, no longer growling. The man stroked Natsumi a few more times before standing up straight and tugging at the donkey's lead, urging the stubborn animal forward.

The man looked down at Sam as he passed with his animals and cart but didn't stop this time, just moved into the streets. Sam watched them leave before trotting over to Natsumi, who hadn't moved from her flattened position.

"Are you alright?" Sam asked, sniffing her.

"I think so," Natsumi said, allowing Sam to check her over. "It stepped on my tail. The human."

"I heard you yelp." Sam looked at Natsumi's tail, running his tongue over the end once, but it didn't look or feel broken. "This wasn't a good idea – bringing you along. We need to leave."

"It – it," Natsumi stuttered, lifting her head and looking in the direction the man had gone.

"He, Natsumi," Sam corrected. "It was a man."

"He . . ." Natsumi didn't seem to know what she wanted to say. She tilted her head at Sam. "He didn't hurt me."

"Not all humans will," Sam said. "As long as they don't think we're dangerous. But if we had two tails or were a different size than normal foxes, humans would know instantly what we are and he would have acted differently."

Natsumi looked in the direction of the old man one last time before standing to her feet. She crouched a bit and her legs shook under her. Sam figured she had had a flashback when the man reached for her.

Sam was starting to regret bringing her along. What was he thinking? Natsumi didn't have any street smarts or good survival instincts when it came to the human city. And there were so many humans for some reason. It had been a terrible decision on his behalf. He had to get her out of here and back home. He could always return for the rifle later.

"Come," Sam encouraged, nudging her side. "Let's head back home."

"Did you do what you wanted to?" Natsumi asked.

"Yes," Sam lied easily, knowing Natsumi would blame herself if he said no.

Sam peered out of the alley. There were several humans, of course, but they were all preoccupied with other humans, little humans, animals, carts, and just stuff in general. If he stayed low and close to the buildings, he should be able to lead his sister out of the city and back home.

"Stay close to me, but keep against the walls and stay out of the road," Sam told Natsumi. He didn't want Natsumi getting trampled.

Natsumi nodded.

Sam slid out of the alley and walked against the walls, avoiding people who backed up quickly or stepped near the building. He could feel Natsumi's breath on his tail, telling him that she was close. Sam kept moving forward and realized they would need to cross the road.

Sam paused and looked straight, trying to see if there was a better, safer way to the forest. If they kept moving straight, they'd leave the city, but have to walk a large circle around the area to get to their side of the forest that would lead home. No, it'd be better to cross the road.

"Natsumi, come to my side," Sam instructed.

Natsumi rushed forward and stood as close as she could get to Sam.

"We have to cross this road," Sam informed. Natsumi looked at the busy street, her ears falling against her head and her breath quickening. "Don't worry, I've done this many times. You just have to watch for feet."

Sam urged her sister into the road and they walked side by side slowly through the crowd of people. Natsumi crouched as she walked, her body shaking as feet landed close to her paws. Sam kept her moving, weaving through the legs of people. Misting would just be easier at this point, but Natsumi still couldn't mist for very far or for very long.

A female human stopped in front of them, nearly stepping on Sam's paws. Sam stopped just before she could step on him. The woman had a little human with her, and they held on to each other's hands. The little human looked at Sam, his dark eyes brightening.

"Puppy," the little boy said. He reached out and pat Sam on the head.

Sam hunched his shoulders and his ears flattened as the boy pat him, his lips lifting slightly to show his teeth. Natsumi lowered herself to the ground, flattening her ears, watching the boy warily. To Sam, the little humans always reminded him of kits with their bright eyes and innocent actions. The woman started moving, dragging the little human with her.

"Bye, puppy," the little boy waved.

Sam watched them leave, briefly wondering why humans seemed so touchy that day. Usually, if a human touched him, it was when he was also in human form and avoiding punches and kicks. Sam shook out his fur before urging his sister forward once more.

"Come," Sam said. "We need to hurry."

Natsumi followed him once more. This time, Sam moved them a little faster. They had gotten three-fourths the way through when feet appeared before them, nearly stomping on them. Sam snarled softly at the sudden stop, annoyed that he wasn't getting through this road as fast as he would have liked.

He felt someone behind them step on his tail and he winced, quickly pulling it out from under the shoe. He was glad he had learned to take pain quietly. The thought made him remember how his sister reacted to pain and he felt his heart flutter in his chest as he looked at Natsumi. The crowd was getting a bit chaotic and . . .

Natsumi yelped as a foot landed on one of her paws. She jumped sideways into Sam, knocking them both down. Sam grunted as he fell on his side, his sister landing on top of him. He looked over at the man that had stepped on Natsumi.

The man was staring down at them curiously. For some reason, Sam didn't think the man was a native, though he looked pretty close to the other natives there. There was something about the face that just seemed off. The man just stood there looking down at them before he glanced around the crowd, as if wondering where these foxes may have come from.

 _He doesn't suspect anything,_ Sam thought, _he must think we are just foxes._

Sam shook his sister off him and stood, nudging Natsumi to stand as well. Natsumi rolled over and jumped to her feet. Sam was about to nudge her to get her moving when he heard the man speak.

"White Star," the man said.

 _Well,_ Sam thought, _he spoke like a native. White star?_

Sam looked down at his chest. Was the man really referring to his fur? Sam looked back up at the man and watched as he leaned forward slightly, peering at him.

"It is! White Star!" The man looked behind him. "I found White Star!"

 _This can't be good._ Sam pushed Natsumi and bolted through the crowd, Natsumi at his side. He glanced behind him, wondering if the man would follow when he heard Natsumi yelp. He watched her fall to the ground, rope tied around her back legs.

"Natsumi!" Sam cried running to her aid, chewing through the rope. He hadn't even seen a man get close enough to tie her up. He only saw the man that found them point a stick their way. How had the man done it?

The crowd of people were starting to scatter as they noticed the foxes and the people chasing after them. Sam freed Natsumi and looked up at the men who were running their way. A couple of the men were carrying strange sticks. The man that had found them stood where he was, waving the man over and pointing at the foxes, speaking in an entirely different language. Sam snarled angrily, standing over his sister.

"Go," Sam growled to Natsumi. "I'll keep them at bay."

"Sa, I'm not leaving you," Natsumi said.

"I'm not giving you a choice," Sam snarled at her. "Go! Now!"

The men were meeting up with the man in the crowd now. Natsumi took a couple steps back, tears in her eyes. She looked at the men and then at Sam. She rushed forward and nuzzled Sam briefly.

"Sa daisuki," she whispered. Sam returned a quick nuzzle before nudging her to go.

Natsumi turned and ran down the street.

Sam faced the men. There had to be a group of eight now, all holding strange sticks. The crowd of people circled around them, watching the situation. Two of the men pointed their sticks at Sam. It must be a threat to attack.

Sam released a flame and moved his head to make the flame jump and cover as much distance in front of him as he could. He heard people gasp and a couple scream at the sight. That was fine if he sparked some fear into these humans. It was self-defense.

The men in front of him scattered, trying to move around the flames, those sticks steady on him.

Sam looked at a couple men who had slipped by the fire to his right. He spat out a fireball in their direction. They jumped to avoid it and it exploded on the building behind them, taking out a chunk of the stone and sending pieces flying at the crowd. Sam heard more screams from the crowd.

Sam looked to his left to see another man trying to approach him. He opened his mouth to spit out another fireball when he saw the face of a couple little humans.

A little girl in a dress and a baby something clung to the legs of their mother, staring at Sam with fear like little lost kits. Sam stared at them for a moment too long when he felt something hit him and his body stiffened.

Sam fell to the ground, yet he couldn't even grunt as he hit it harshly. He couldn't move a muscle. What was wrong with him? He tried to move, willing his fox magic to break whatever was keeping him down.

Sam saw his sister, who had made it out of the street, come running back his way. No, he had to tell her to turn around. Sam fought with all his magic to break free.

Finally, he could open his mouth and bark.

"Natsumi!" He called to his nearing sister. "Stop! Go back!"

Natsumi slowly stopped in the middle of the street she was running down. She didn't want to leave her brother – she needed him. She began to shake her head.

"Go!" Sam barked to her, feeling the spell loosen more, now able to move his neck.

The men around him seemed to be watching curiously as they fixed the broken building and said 'obliviate' a hundred times to the crowd of people.

"Go back!" Sam continued as he watched Natsumi take a few steps forward. "Now! Go home!"

Sam could see the tears Natsumi was crying as she reluctantly turned around, glancing back one last time at Sam. Sam was happy she listened.

Just as he felt this strange magic lose its hold after fighting with his magic, two men pinned him to the ground before he could jump to his feet. A third man covered his mouth with both hands. Sam growled and whipped his head around, trying to free himself. Another man ran down the alley after Natsumi and Sam snarled more.

"Let it go," another man commanded. Sam looked up at this well-dressed man, with stylish pants, fringed shirt, and black, shined shoes. Sam hated him instantly and he snarled to express that hate. "We just need this one."

"Don't worry, now," Another man spoke to the crowd. "We have taken care of the animal. It will be removed from your city so it can cause no more harm. Thank you for following our instructions to stay back. Return to your business."

Sam fought as a metal cage-like thing was put over his muzzle and strapped around his head. He shook his head to try and get it off. More chains were tied around his legs. A man waved a stick discreetly around his head.

"Good night, White Star," The stylish man said above him. "Enjoy your trip to Hong Kong."

Sam snarled at the man but whatever the man with the stick was doing, Sam felt his eyes close against his will, falling asleep when he would rather fight for his freedom.

* * *

"Sam!"

Harry jumped at the sound of his father's voice. He had been so into the story he wasn't expecting the call. Sam looked at Severus as well.

"I said ten more minutes," Severus reminded him. "It is way past Harry's bedtime."

Harry huffed, unhappy that he won't be hearing what happened next.

"They were wizards, weren't they?" Harry asked.

 _: They never told me what they were or what their sticks were. I simply learned to be wary of the stick. But after meeting you and you father, I'm sure that's exactly what they were._

"They don't sound like very good wizards," Harry said.

 _: They weren't, I can tell you that._

"That's enough story time, Sam," Severus said.

 _: I'm afraid we'll have to stop here for tonight._

"But Sam was just captured by these wizards that were going to take him to – uh – Hong Kong?" Harry gave Sam a questioning look.

 _: China, Harry._

"Oh, China," Harry nodded, now knowing where that was. "Why? Why did they call you White Star? How did they even know you? What did they want? Did you escape?"

 _: I'll let you answer that last question yourself,_ Sam smirked. Sam reached forward and touched his nose to the orb. When he pulled back, Harry felt a strong tug on his arms and he let the orb go, watching it fly to Sam.

 _: Goodnight, Harry. I'll tell you the rest another time._

"Goodnight, Sam," Harry yawned, suddenly feeling tired. He rolled on his side and closed his eyes. "Night, Dad."

"Goodnight," Severus said. "Sweet dreams, son."

Sam jumped off the bed, the orb following and Severus shut the door once the fox was out.

"So, how do you get rid of that?" Severus asked, motioning to the orb with a hand. "Swallow it whole?"

 _: Not quite_.

Sam barked at the orb and it fell to the floor, shattering as if it was made of glass. But instead of glass pieces flying everywhere, fire appeared for a moment, only to be smothered out by the wet substance that now covered the carpet. Mucus-like, Severus noted, making a face.

"That is probably my least favorite thing you can do," Severus admitted. "With it coming from your stomach and being covered in slime, it is just simply gross. Impressive, but repulsive."

Sam laughed and swiped his tails over the carpet, cleaning the mess.

 _: I agree,_ the fox smiled. _But it does come in handy._

* * *

I hope it was satisfactory! Just a reminder – daisuki – I love you.


	10. Deals and Rats

Sorry for such a long wait. Here is the next chapter!

* * *

"Sam, you have to tell me what happened next!" Harry quickly jumped into bed and crawled under the blankets, eager to hear the rest of Sam's tale. "Why did those men want you? How did they know you? Who were they? Are they good – are they bad?"

 _: One question at a time,_ Sam chastised with a wide foxy smile as he entered Harry's room.

"Sorry."

"Harry, listen to Sam while I'm at this detention," Severus said from Harry's doorway. "It's just an hour of cauldron scrubbing, plenty of time for a little more of Sam's story. Behave."

"Yes, Dad," Harry said.

Severus left their quarters to see to the detention of an unlucky Gryffindor and Slytherin who saw it fit to hex each other in the halls.

Sam jumped up on Harry's bed to take his usual spot.

 _: So, where were we?_

"They used a spell to put you to sleep and they were taking you to Hong Kong."

 _: Good memory. It shows you listen well._ Sam smiled at Harry and flicked his ears approvingly. He laid down on the bed to be more comfortable, but stayed at the end. _The boat ride is next I believe. But remember how I told you I believed Akira had spirit magic?_

Harry nodded.

 _: Well, Akira appeared to me for a second time, warning me of what was ahead, and I was sure of my belief that Akira definitely had spirit magic after that . . ._

* * *

"Samuru," a voice called to him.

Sam stirred slightly, but his eyes remained closed. Why couldn't they let him sleep?

"Samuru, wake up," the voice said again.

Growling, Sam opened his eyes. Standing before him was Akira, sitting with three tails held up behind him – twitching ever so slightly – and two tails wrapped around his legs. The wolf sized fox stared down at Sam, his ears erect and alert. Sam sat up as well and took in his surroundings.

They were both sitting on the deck of a large boat, miles of ocean behind and before them, waves splashing up against the sides, the salty flavor of the water thick in the air. Umineko (Japanese seagulls) squawked like quarreling cats in the air as they followed the boat. Sam twitched his ears as he looked around, unsure of where he was and wanting to return home with Natsumi.

"Otousan," Sam began, unsure of what to say to his father. Akira spoke before he could say much more.

"You are about to make the most difficult decisions of your life, my son."

"I've never been so far from home, Otousan. I'm afraid."

"I know. But your bravery shows through you more than your fear does. I have faith that you will do well to take care of yourself. Natsumi is safe and unharmed. She will have to learn to do as you have and fend for herself."

"She's still so small."

"As were you, smaller even than her."

"I just wanted to protect her."

"And you have – true to your promise. Okaasan and I are grateful. But now, Natsumi is safe, and you must protect yourself. You are a good judge of character – use it to your advantage and choose your allies wisely. Remember what I have taught you. I know you will find your way and your freedom once more."

"I don't want to do this on my own, Otousan," Sam whined, his ears dropping as he lowered his head slightly. "I need you. Why can't you be here when I need you the most?"

Akira was silent as he stared at Sam. Then, the larger fox moved towards the bow of the boat, standing on the edge and lifting his head to feel the wind in his fur. Sam slowly joined Akira at the bow, standing next to him and copying his stance. Closing his eyes, Sam felt the wind and droplets of saltwater blowing through his fur. It felt refreshing and he smiled.

"The wind and the ocean are so distant from the other yet connected in every way," Akira spoke. Sam looked over at Akira, staring into his father's yellow eyes. "For without the wind, the ocean has no waves. And without the ocean, the wind is dry with no salt. I may be distant, but we are connected like the wind and the sea; for without you, I would be nothing. And without me, you would always be alone. Believe me, Sa, when I say that you are never without me."

Sam opened his eyes briefly to see that he was in a cage and took a guess that he was on a boat still, registering that what he had experienced was another dream before closing his eyes again and passing out.

* * *

After the dream, Sam was in and out of consciousness through the long journey. He had been briefly aware of being shoved into a metal cage, felt the rocking nauseous feeling of being on a boat, and finally, could begin making out words, though he could not understand the language.

Sam opened his eyes and for the first time, he was completely awake and alert of his surroundings. The metal thing on his mouth – he realized was a muzzle – felt cold through his fur and was starting to hurt his head due to how tight the strap was. He was still in a cage, a small cage with thick metal bars. No problem, he could shrink in size and slip right through the bars. He tried to push himself up but something cold around all four paws kept him from standing completely. He looked down and realized he was chained to the bottom of the cage.

He could still shrink down from his fox-sized body – it shouldn't be a problem. Sam pushed himself up a bit more, his tails twitching but not lifting, before he fell back to the hard, cold metal floor. His nostrils and throat burned with a stench he wasn't familiar with. He felt weak, as though he was being drained of every bit of energy he had. Sam looked past the meat bars and into the room he was being held in.

It was a dark gray room, and he guessed the cage was resting on a large table. The room reminded him of a prison cell, one he recognized from the previous world. There was only a solid metal door that had a small, barred window at the top. There were no windows in the room and it was surprisingly freezing inside. Sam wondered what that burning, acidic smell was before he spotted the bottles sitting in front of the cage.

Alcohol. Sam backed away as much as his restraints would allow from the several bottles but the smell still reached him. Alcohol was deadly to a kitsune. While a typical beer could be consumed with little problem, any kind of alcohol above fifteen percent was poisoning if not lethal. That kind of percentage could also weaken a kitsune greatly by just the smell. Sam hoped that his captors didn't dump the bottles on him or force him to drink the acidic drink.

Sam started to feel dizzy from the smell and he wondered if he would pass out when the door opened. He lowered himself defensively and bared his teeth at the hands that removed the alcohol bottles away from his cage.

After an intense silent moment, Sam moved forward and glanced through the bars. A man was sitting in a chair facing him while three other men stood behind him.

The man sitting was a pale man with wavy brown hair and matching brown eyes. He held a bottle of alcohol before, turning it slowly in his fingers. The man standing to his right was also pale skinned, but with lighter brown hair and hazel eyes and a much younger appearance. The other two men in the room standing at opposite ends looked but didn't look Japanese. He recognized those two men as some of the ones who captured him. They must work for the sitting man.

The oddest thing about the four men were the choice of clothing. Pants were becoming a norm for men in these times, but these men wore dresses – or what Sam thought looked like dresses.

Hong Kong must be where he was, Sam remembered. Hong Kong – China! He was in China. That made the two Japanese-like men Chinese.

Suddenly, the man spoke in some foreign tongue and the muzzle on Sam disappeared.

Sam jumped at the odd sense of power in the room, but he quickly gathered himself and snarled. The man paused for a moment before speaking again. Sam didn't understand what he was saying, but he knew he hated the man before him. He bit down on the bars of the cage, snarling more. The man spoke in another foreign language different than the first, but Sam didn't recognize it and continued to snarl over the cage bars.

The sitting man whispered to one of the Chinese men. The Chinese man stepped forward and spoke Japanese, "Speak, fox!"

 _: Speak?_ Sam turned his snarl to the Chinese man, releasing the bars of the cage. _You wish for me to speak? You dare to give me commands you give a common dog!?_

The Chinese man stepped back and spoke to the sitting man, who pulled out a stick and waved it around.

"Do you understand me now, White Star?" The man sitting asked, speaking in fluent Japanese, though Sam was sure that stick waving had a play in this.

 _: Upsettingly, I do,_ Sam growled in return.

"Welcome to my mansion," the man continued. "Well, the dungeons, I should say. We have moved far past Hong Kong at this point, but I will not reveal where we are. I wouldn't want to give away too much information."

Sam bared his teeth as he bit down on the bars once more, grinding his molars on the metal.

"Let him out."

The two Chinese men stepped forward and picked up what looked like rabies pole catchers. Some words were muttered and the restraints on Sam disappeared. Then the cage door opened.

Without thinking, Sam charged forward but two ropes wrapped around his neck and tightened, keeping him from running forward any more. Sam fought against the constricting feeling around his neck, whipping his body around and thrashing his head. However, the ropes continued to tighten with his efforts and he choked and gagged.

Finally, Sam stopped fighting and simply stood on the table breathing to catch his breath. When he moved the slightest, the tightening worsened and Sam froze and gagged again slightly. He glanced to his sides to see that the Chinese men were handling the rabies poles, keeping the ropes tight around his neck. He panted as he looked up at the still sitting man.

"Finished?" the man smirked.

Sam simply continued panting as he glared at the man.

"I'll take your silence as a yes. My name is Fawcett. This here is Savatier," the man, Fawcett, motioned towards the hazel-eyed man standing. "And your two restrainers are Li and Zhang."

Surnames, Sam thought, everyone's going by surnames.

"So, what's your name?" Fawcett asked.

Sam snarled at Fawcett instead of answering, his ears standing forward and his tails lifting ever so slightly as his fur puffed out a bit.

"No name? Was I right on White Star?"

Sam did not like that name and refused to allow its use to be continued. Where it had come from, he didn't know, but he'd put an end to it.

 _: Ishimori_ , Sam spat.

"Ishimori," Fawcett smiled. "Very Japanese, I guess. You must be wondering why we have brought you here. Well, let me explain. We hear you are an exceptionally skilled thief and silent killer from hunters living in your home city."

Home city? Sam spat at the idea before he realized that humans had been spying on him when he went on his travels through the city. How careless could he be to not have noticed!? And to think he had brought his sister along into that dangerous situation.

"You are an exceptional fighter, as well, in human and fox form. Clearly, you're incapable of taking out a trained professional as we, but . . ."

 _: Incapable!?_ Sam hissed, _without your sticks, I'd burn you alive, you cheats!_

"Oh, you mean these?" Fawcett held up a long, reddish colored stick. Sam's ears flattened against his head but he bared his teeth at the strange weapon. "Yes, the . . . sticks come in handy. But we don't always need them, so I warn you not to try anything."

Sam glared at the man as he pulled on the restraints again, pulling once to the left and then again to the right to try and loosen the ropes around his neck. The ropes merely tightened and the two men readjusted their grip on the handles. Fawcett watched with a glint in his brown eyes, leaning back in his chair and interlocking his fingers over his fancy blue dress-like clothes.

"Anyway, to the point of you being here," Fawcett continued, "What I want from you – what we all want from you – is to perform a little . . . task for us. There is a dark wi – err, an evil human's mansion not far from my own. We need to infiltrate it to obtain a . . . special object. There is also gold hidden within the walls somewhere, millions and millions of gold coins. This person seems to think that a bank is untrustworthy. What you need to do is assassinate this evil human as swiftly as you can, then retrieve the object, find where he hides his money and let us in so we can collect the gold. If you do this job, I'm willing to offer a portion of that gold."

 _: I don't want no gold._

"Really? I thought it would be tempting. After all, foxes like shiny things."

Sam couldn't deny that. Kitsune had a weakness to shiny materials and he knew that if he saw gold or anything shiny, he would desire to have it in a heartbeat. It takes the strongest kitsune to learn to resist the temptation and Sam was still learning. But there was one thing all kitsune valued over gold and shiny things.

 _: I want my freedom._

"And you will have it, of course!" Fawcett smiled, opening his arms as if embracing the idea. "I assure you of that. You do this for us, and we will set you free. Along with that she-fox of yours. Think of your little fox friend. You seemed so eager to protect her."

Sam snarled at the man, not liking that he was bringing up Natsumi.

"What was it, a mate, perhaps?"

Sam continued to snarl at him, daring him to say more about his sister.

"You wouldn't want anything to happen to her, now would you?"

 _: You leave her out of this!_ Sam barked angrily at Fawcett. _And she's not a mate. She's my sister!_

"I didn't think such customs were below you, Ishimori," Fawcett gave a sinister smirk. "After all, she's still just that – a she."

Sam lunged forward against his restraints on the table, his mouth opened wide, ignoring the constriction around his throat. He could feel the two restrainers try and pull him back but he used as much strength to stretch towards the Fawcett. He saw a brief look of fear flash on the pale man's face before Sam closed his eyes and clamped his mouth shut directly in front of the man. He mostly felt air run through his mouth, teeth clamping down on teeth.

However, as he opened his eyes and stared right into Fawcett's angry ones, he noticed a small puncture wound on the man's cheek and a small trail of blood leave the wound. Sam felt satisfaction run through his body as he panted angrily, staring the man down. Fawcett touched his cheek with a hand, hissing slightly.

The hazel-eyed man, Savatier, picked up a spear-like weapon and pointed the tip at Sam, gently probing the fur to back the fox up. Sam could also feel the ropes getting tighter from the pulling behind him and he allowed himself to be forced back. A muzzle appeared on him once more, tightening itself around his head.

Fawcett flicked his hand and a handkerchief appeared in his grip. He dabbed at the wound on his face while Savatier searched his blackish-blue dress clothes and pulled out a small container of something white. He handed the container to Fawcett.

Sam watched as Fawcett rubbed the substance into his cheek and the wound mended together and disappeared – like it never even happened. Sam's satisfaction dissolved. Needing it to return, Sam spoke to the sick man that dare insinuate something like that about his sister.

 _: If you ever touch my sister – if you ever get a hundred feet near her, I'll blast you then feed you to your own kind._

Fawcett smirked, saying, "I'm sure your kind might readily cannibalize, but I don't think my fellows would . . ."

 _: I was thinking rats,_ Sam added with a hiss.

"I see," Fawcett lost his smirk as he handed the container back to Savatier. He glared at Sam as he stood up from his seat. "Here's what I'll do. I'll give you twenty-four hours to think over my proposal. If you haven't made up your mind by then, we'll find your little sister and have her beheaded."

Sam saw red as he barked and snarled angrily at the man retreating from the room with Savatier. The two men remaining, Li and Zhang, forced Sam back into the cage where the restraints sprang up and held his paws, keeping him from moving. Bottles of alcohol were left around the room again, this time away from the cage but still close enough on the table to have an effect on the kitsune. Sam thrashed around in the cage long after the men had left him alone in the cold, dark room, desperate to be free and to protect his only living sister.

* * *

Hours passed. Sam had finally calmed and rested in the cage, the restraints hurting now from his earlier efforts to free himself. Sam thought about his situation and how he should go about it. Akira had appeared to him in a dream for a second time, but with advice and the promise to always be at his side. If only always being at his side meant that Akira could free him from this enslavement. Sam sighed and rested his head on his paws.

He had to make a choice, stay and help these humans and risk dying with this task or continue to fight against them and risk his sister's life. In the end, Sam didn't have to put much thought into his decision.

He would not risk his sister's life.

Yet, though Sam would agree to help these humans, he did not feel that he could trust him. There was too much he didn't understand about them: the sticks, the greed for an object, that healing cream, and the strange aura of power that came off them. And then there was the whole assassination thing. Why him? Yes, he was skilled at swift killing and thieving, but surely humans possessed the same ability.

Sam thought about the humans back in Japan. The majority he encountered did not have such an aura as these ones. They all had smelled . . . ordinary. Perhaps in this extraordinary world, ordinary humans would simply not match up to what these humans were after.

Sam was sure there were other reasons why he was being used, but he couldn't think up any more possibilities and he was sure that if he asked, he would not receive an answer. Or at least, an honest one.

Sam licked his dry lips and his stomach growled for the umpteenth time. It had to have been days since his last meal, considering he had been knocked out for the entire boat ride. He heard the door open and he lifted his head to see Li and Zhang come in with a different pale faced man that hadn't been in the room before.

"Hello, foxy," the pale face with blonde hair smiled. "Hungry? Fawcett ordered to have you fed. Like chicken?"

Sam stared at the blonde through the bars as the man held up a chicken leg bone in front of the cage. The delicious, grilled smell filled the tiny enclosure quickly and he licked his lips hungrily, his stomach growling. The blonde smiled and sat in the chair still in the room and began to eat the chicken himself. Li and Zhang sat a tray of more food down on the table in front of Sam's cage and each took a chicken leg as well, enjoying it noisily.

Sam snarled softly as he realized what they were doing. He laid his head back down and ignored them, his hunger hurting painfully at the smell of chicken, rice, and vegetables nearby. They must have noticed his ignorance after a few moments because their attention was on him again.

"Are you thirsty, doggy?" Zhang asked, pushing an empty bowl towards the front of Sam's cage.

Sam watched warily as Zhang pulled out his blackish stick and pointed it at the bowl. He said a strange word and water began filling the bowl. Sam licked his lips at the sight of the cold, refreshing water, but didn't move, watching the stick.

After filling the bowl, Zhang lifted the stick and pointed it at Sam. Water sprayed down harshly into the cage. Sam snarled viciously as water hit his face, shaking his head and trying to sit up, but then he coughed and choked as he inhaled some. He could hear the three men laughing outside the cage. Sam decided to stay still and hold his breath while the man soaked his fur.

Finally, the men had had their fun. Zhang put his stick away and laughed with the other men as they stood to leave. Sam wondered if they would put the bowl in the cage since the muzzle allowed him to drink if he could stick his head into it.

His question was answered when the blonde flung the water bowl off the table, sending it crashing to the floor. Sam watched the three men laugh and leave the room, shutting the thick, solid door behind them, their laughs still slipping through the small barred window at the top.

Now wet, cold, hungry, and thirsty, Sam shivered and tried to shake more water off his fur. He lowered his head and tried to lick the water on the metal floor of his cage through the muzzle's barred wire – a task that proved difficult.

Sam wondered if this would be his life once he told Fawcett of his decision. He hoped there was a brighter future than this dark room.

After another hour, Sam was still wet when the door opened again. Sam looked up and snarled, thinking it was the trio with more food and water.

Instead, Sam saw Savatier walk through with a tray of food. There was only a single chicken bone with a small portion of rice and greens on the side, a smaller version of the food tray the trio had brought. Sam snarled slightly as Savatier approached, now wearing some kind of blue nightgown.

"Hey, Ishimori," Savatier smiled, his face looking younger than it had earlier. "Li was bragging about what he and his friends did to you earlier. You were supposed to get the food, by the way. Li and Zhang are trained dark creature handlers and Acton, the blonde, was supposed to watch over your feeding."

Sam listened with interest at what Savatier was saying. His stomach growled more at the sight of food, but this young lad seemed friendly. His hazel eyes showed no devilish mischief or any trace of treachery. It was dangerous to be too friendly – one could make stupid mistakes. And Sam was hoping for just that.

"I'm not really supposed to be in here – Fawcett would kill me. I'm a traveler really, after leaving Beauxbatons Academy of Magic, I left France all together to travel the world and learn about different cultures. I've been to the UK, Spain, Germany, Italy, Greece, Romania, Denmark, Ireland, Russia, and now China. But I'm only in China because Fawcett found me in Russia and was impressed with my archery and swordsmanship. And of course, of my magic skills. I'm not too brilliant yet, but I'll get there. I'm only twenty-three."

As Savatier talked about his history, he cautiously approached Sam's cage and pulled out his stick. Sam watched it warily as Savatier waved it around.

Then his restraints released him and his muzzle disappeared. Savatier opened the cage door slowly.

Escape was the only word that ran through his head.

Sam leaped out of the cage and slammed into Savatier's chest, knocking him to the ground with a sickening thud. Sam grew to the size of a large wolf, an exhausting task since the alcohol still influenced him. Sam kept Savatier pinned down and snarled at the young man.

"Please, I just wanted to help you," Savatier said, raising his stick.

Sam clamped down on the stick and wrenched it from Savatier's grasp, tossing it aside. Sam's teeth were inches from lashing at the boy's face as he stared into the terrified eyes.

"Ishimori, I'm sorry," Savatier pleaded, holding his hands over his neck and face.

Sam's snarl slowly died. He remembered Akira's words: _choose your allies wisely._

This boy was no threat – he was just that – a boy. A kid. An innocent. Savatier had brought food to him, removed the tight, uncomfortable restraints, and had opened the door to give him food and water. It had been the nicest thing any human had done thus far.

Sam sighed and let off of Savatier's chest, shrinking back down to a normal fox size. Savatier back crawled away and picked up his stick and aimed it at Sam, still sitting, running a hand through his tussled brown hair in an attempt to fix it.

 _: I thought you didn't always need the stick,_ Sam said sitting down on the floor.

"I'm not very good at wa- I mean, stickless magic," Savatier answered.

 _: All this talk of magic and hocus pocus,_ Sam grumbled, jumping up on to the table where the tray of food was. He began eating the small portions that would surely hold him over until morning. Even so, the food was delicious and welcoming on his starved stomach, even if the chicken was a little burnt and the rice was sticky.

"I was told not to really talk about it with you." Savatier stood up and walked over to the table, sitting in the chair.

 _: Of course._

Savatier sat in silence for a moment as he watched Sam inhale the food.

"I'm sorry there isn't more. It's all that was left."

 _: It'll do. Water?_

"Oh, right."

Savatier pointed his stick at the empty bowl on the tray and filled it with water. Sam lapped it down quickly, needing two more refills. Once he was satisfied, he set about to cleaning his fur and licking himself dry.

"I'm really sorry for what happened," Savatier said. "I can dry you with a spell . . ."

When Savatier pointed the stick at the fox, Sam snarled open mouthed at him, his ears flattening against his head and his tails twitching in warning.

"Sorry," Savatier lowered the stick and watched Sam continue to groom himself.

 _: Why are you working for these men?_ Sam asked once he was dry.

"I get a portion of the gold," Savatier explained. "And Fawcett really needs my skills. We'll be working together. I'm more of a back-up. Fawcett really just wants you."

 _: How does he even know of me?_

"You took out a demon. Word spread through Japan and got to China and around. You're kind of a legend. White Star, the incredible fox!"

 _: I didn't kill the demon. A Ryu did._

"But you fought it and stood up to it. There are some tales that end with the demon being eaten by a dragon, but then other tales end with you using your foxfire to burn the demon to ashes and blowing a mighty wind on it to send it back to hell." Savatier waved his hands around dramatically as he explained the folklore.

 _: In any of these stories, am I saving someone specific?_

"Not really. Some say you were saving a beautiful vixen to claim as your mate. Some say you were just freeing the captured animals of Japan. It varies really. It's just stories to muggles, but we know the truth."

 _: I think your truth and my truth are different._

"Well, only you know what really happened that night, but hey, you're famous now."

 _: Am I supposed to be happy about that? These stories could put my sister at risk._

"You are really protective of your sister. I'm sorry we took you from her. I promise if you do as Fawcett says, you'll be back with her in no time. He'll let you go."

 _: I'll believe it when it happens. But for now, I agree to his proposal for the sake of leaving my sister out of this._

"Great. You'll get a good portion of the gold. You won't regret your decision."

 _: I already do._

"My name's Leonard, by the way."

 _: Leonard Savatier. Interesting._

"Well, what's your name?"

 _: Just because you're foolish enough to give me your name does not mean I will give you mine._ Sam flashed his teeth at the idea, lifting his head slightly and pawing at the table.

"We'll be working together. It'd be nice to be on first name terms."

Sam sighed and remained silent for a moment. He figured it couldn't hurt to let the kid know his name.

 _: Fine. But no one else is to know. My name's Samuru._

"Samuru. That's unique. Do you have a nickname? Can I call you Roo?"

 _: Absolutely not! I do not have a nickname. It's Samuru or Ishimori._ Sam would be damned if he allowed a human to call him Sa - that was a family name only. Why was this boy so interested in befriending him? He must not have many friends, though that wouldn't surprise him since Leonard said he traveled a lot. Right now, he was drumming his fingers on the table thinking up of a nickname.

"How about Mur? That sounds nice. No? How about Muru? How do you spell your name? S-A . . . Samur . . . M . . . you don't have an 'h' anywhere in your name, do you? So far, S-A-M – Sam! How about I call you Sam?"

 _: You got that out of Samuru?_

"It may not sound like the beginning of your name, but it does look it. Do you like it?"

Sam. It wasn't a bad nickname. He had never really been called Sam in either world. In the previous, no one knew his name and just referred to him as 'that fox' or 'devil' or 'thief.' He hated 'devil,' but Sam wasn't bad. He was already growing on him. As long as it wasn't Sa.

 _: Fine. But I get to call you Leo._

"Sounds like a deal, Sam," Leo smiled, his eyes sparkling.

Sam tilted his head, an ear flopping slightly. He was rather excited for the adventure, but he still didn't completely trust these humans. But a friend would be nice to have along the way. An ally.

* * *

 _: Before Leo left, I walked back into the cage myself and he just locked the cage door. No restraints for the night which I was thankful for. It was a shock for those who came in the next day. Leo and I became great friends, and he taught me to read, write, and speak Chinese, French and a bit of English. English was the hardest. He was also a great training partner._

"Wow," Harry smiled. "Dad can speak a few different languages. I don't think Chinese or Japanese, though."

"No, I cannot," Severus said, walking into the room. "Just French, Spanish, Latin, a bit of German ad a bit of Russian."

 _: I can speak Spanish as well, but I learned that at a later point._

"So, were these wizards like Aurors or something that wanted to stop a dark wizard?" Harry asked.

 _: Ah, that is a story . . ._

"Don't even say it, Sam!" Harry pouted, crossing his arms over his blanket. Then he smiled. "So, your nickname was given to you by Leo. That's cool! Are you still friends with him?"

"Harry, how long ago did Sam say this was?" Severus smirked.

"He didn't actually."

 _: I guess not,_ Sam smiled. _At this point, the year is 1881. I was 198 years old._

"Wow. That's a long time ago. I guess Leo would have passed on by then," Harry remarked.

Sam looked away at that comment, his ears twitching and pivoting sideways uneasily. The fox drew in a deep breath and sighed, his eyes closing briefly. Harry frowned and opened his mouth to ask Sam what was wrong when Severus spoke first.

"1881? That's the year Albus Dumbledore was born."

 _: The wizard with the long, white fur? I knew he was ancient._

"Look who's talking," Severus chuckled. "I don't think you're any better."

Harry laughed with Sam at that.

"It's bedtime, Harry," Severus said, leaning over and kissing his son's forehead. "Sweet dreams, son."

"Night, Dad," Harry kissed Severus's cheek. "Night, Sam."

Once in the hall, Severus looked down at the fox walking by his side to the living room.

"You didn't look happy when Harry asked if Leo had passed away. I'm going to guess Leo didn't pass of old age."

 _: I was ordered to do it at the expense of my sister's life. As I said, it's a story for another time. I'm going hunting._

Severus watched the fox mist away, only able to imagine how difficult the task must have been for Sam, but also wondering why.

* * *

Hope it was satisfying! Please review!


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